Dog alerts owner about house fire
A black Labrador is the one to thank for alerting it’s owner about the fire that was burning at their Foothills home early Wednesday morning, according to a spokesperson for the Rural/Metro Fire Department.
“The dog woke him up,” Charly McMurdie said. “That is how he found out his home was on fire.”
The homeowner, who received minor injuries, was trying to put the fire out with a garden hose when Rural/Metro arrived on scene. By then the house had become fully engulfed in flames.
McMurdie said the fire, which was reported by a deputy from the Yuma County Sheriff’s Office, broke out at about 4:10 a.m. at a home in the 12000 block of Joleane Avenue, which is in the Foothills.
She explained that someone had called YCSO to report the fire and the deputy who responded contacted Rural/Metro to report it.
Firefighters quickly knocked down the fire and prevented it from spreading to nearby trees, but the house was a total loss.
The Red Cross Yuma was also notified to offer assistance to the man who lost everything he owned in the fire, providing him and his dog with food, clothing and temporary lodging.
McMurdie said the man was transported to Yuma Regional Center by Rural/Metro ambulance, while the dog was taken by a sheriff deputy, who turned it over to the Red Cross.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.