Car crash survivor's dog rescued by Department of Transportation supervisor during winter storm
The dog, Max, was found by a Department of Transportation employee about a mile from the crash.
Missing dog rescued by Tennessee Department of Transportation employee during a winter storm
Tennessee Department of Transportation Supervisor, David Wortham, tracked a missing dog for over a mile during a winter storm in Knoxville. Wortham then helped reunite the dog with his family.
KNOXVILLE, TN - A Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) employee is being praised as a hero after tracking down a missing dog during a winter storm on Saturday.
NEXT ROUND OF SNOW BEGINS ACROSS WINTER-WEARY EAST, LATE-WEEK STORM COULD CAUSE TRAVEL TROUBLE
TDOT Highway Response Supervisor David Wortham was responding to a car accident on Interstate 40 in Knoxville, Tennessee, when the driver's dog ran away.
The dog, Max, became spooked by the crash and ran off into the woods.
Wortham tracked the dog for about a mile by following the paw prints he left in the snow.
According to the TDOT, Wortham found the dog on the porch of a random house. The family pet was exhausted and scared.
Wortham then helped rescue Max and reunited him with his family.
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Image 1 of 3A family pet, Max, ran away during a car accident on Saturday. He was rescued by a Tennessee Department of Transportation employee. (Tennessee Department of Transportation )
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Image 2 of 3A Tennessee Department of Transportation employee tracked down a missing dog for over a mile during a winter storm. (Tennessee Department of Transportation )
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Image 3 of 3A missing dog was found on the porch of a random house by Tennessee Department of Transportation employee. (Tennessee Department of Transportation )
Over the weekend, a powerful winter storm bombarded Knoxville and East Tennessee. Parts of Knoxville saw at least 4 inches of snow with high wind chills between five degrees above zero and five degrees below zero.
The region was in a cold weather advisory through Sunday afternoon.
A snow plow near a fallen tree and electrical pole during a winter storm in east Nashville, Tennessee, US, on Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026.
(Photographer: Kate Dearman/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
The extreme cold temperatures created icy and hazardous roadways which caused numerous crashes throughout the area.
Officials warned residents to stay home until the storm passed since many roads had not been cleared from the heavy snow and were slippery.