Dogs Pulled from Burning Home

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NORTH STAFFORD, Va. — Fire crews pulled two dogs from a burning home in North Stafford on Sunday afternoon.

The fire broke out at a 2-story single family home on Stoneridge Court at 3 p.m. Sunday. Fire crews arrived to find flames and heavy smoke billowing from the home. Once inside, crews were also faced with high heat in addition to the other conditions, said Stafford County Fire and Rescue Deputy Chief Steve Weissman.

It took crews about 15 minutes to knock down the blaze. Several firefighters remained inside the house dousing hot spots to ensure a fire didn’t reignite. There was no one inside the home and no one was injured.

But there were two dogs inside the house that firefighters rescued. Fire crews pulled 8-month-old bulldog Dodger, and his larger brother, Smash, 5, and gave them both oxygen at the street curb in front of the house. Both dogs had no issues with having the oxygen masks placed on their snouts.

“We found the dogs on the second floor of the house and then helped them get downstairs,” said one firefighter on the scene.

He declined the give his name but the fire figher said that saving the dogs was a team effort.

“We had the entire fire department here…it wasn’t just me… we all helped,” he added.

The homeowner was not home when flames broke out. He said he was attending baseball practice when fire crews were called to his home.

A neighbor called 911 after smelling burning plastic.

The dogs’ owner was happy to see his rescued animals and hugged both of them as the dogs received oxygen.

It’s unclear what started the fire. Flames were initially contained to the second floor and attic of the home but eventually shot through the roof.