Fire..Rottweiler saves owner

shybird · #1 12-31-2004, 06:32 PM

Date: Thu Dec 30, 2004 6:54 pm
Subject: Dog saves owner’s life in Egg Harbor Township fire

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http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/n...904FIREDOG.cfm

December 29, 2004
Dog saves owner's life in EHT fire
By JULIA GLICK Staff Writer, (609) 272-7213

EGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP - A dog saved its owner's life as fire gutted a
house on Stafford Avenue before firefighters could extinguish the
blaze Tuesday morning, firefighters said.

No one was seriously injured.

"It was crackling and everything. The flames came very fast," said
Bernice Livingston, 48, the next-door neighbor who called 911. "It
was nerve-racking. We live close, and our trees were burning."

Michael Athill, 21, who was in the house, was treated for smoke
inhalation at Shore Memorial Hospital and then released, said Fire
Inspector Donald Stauffer.

The house was gutted, but there was no damage to neighboring homes.

Athill was sleeping in the house when his Rottweiler woke him up.

"The dog saved his life," Stauffer said.

The fire started when a candle overturned in the night, Stauffer
said. Athill lived alone in the house, which belonged to his father.
The home had no utilities, and Athill was using candles for light,
Stauffer said. He kept warm with blankets.

The dog woke Athill around 9 a.m.. Smoke surrounded him and he
attempted to put out the fire with a blanket, Stauffer said. Athill
ran next door, his face smudged black with soot and had Livingston
phone for help, Livingston said.

"It smelled just like rubber burning," she said. "He came and he was
screaming, 'Call 911!' And I just kept calling."

Firefighters arrived quickly, she said.

Flames were coming out of all the windows, Stauffer said.
Firefighters controlled the blaze in about 30 minutes, investigated
the cause afterward and left the scene at 1:30 p.m..

The dog was unharmed and Athill is staying with a relative.

To e-mail Julia Glick at The Press:

JGlick@p...