DULUTH, Minn. — A yellow lab named Dudley is likely enjoying a few extra treats Thursday after his alert saved the family home in Duluth, and perhaps averted tragedy in the process.
The Duluth Fire Department shared the story on its Facebook page, describing how crews were dispatched Wednesday night to a home on the 4100 block of Chambersburg Ave. When engines arrived they found a large garage fully engulfed, just inches from a house where a family of four had been sleeping.
Firefighters learned that the family dog was kenneled in the heated garage when the fire started, and that his barking woke a 12-year-old girl who was asleep inside the home. She reportedly looked out the window, saw the garage burning and calmly woke the rest of her family, allowing them to safely escape.
The girl's father then searched for Dudley the dog and helped him get out of the burning garage with only some minor singes on his fur.
"The quick action of this young girl definitely saved more damage to the structures," the Duluth FD said on Facebook. "According to her father she acted quickly and calmly. By being dispatched before the fire reached the house the DFD was able to keep the fire out of the house."
Department officials say the garage fire was fought from a defensive posture due to the fact the structure was fully involved, and information that there were several cylinders of welding gas inside.
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