Family dog leads firefighters to trapped children in their burning home

Neighbours of an Orlando, Florida deputy saw flames and realized that her house was on fire at about 11pm on Monday, they quickly called 911 and rushed to help her, her husband, their two children. One of the neighbors, Mr. Dover, was able to break through all the front windows of the home and rescue the Seminole County sheriff's deputy.

Fortunately, Firefighters responded to the fire around 11:20 p.m. and were able to pull her husband from the home but because of the thickness of the smoke, they couldn't find the couple's 4 year old son and 2 year old daughter who were still trapped in the house.

Fortunately, the family dog, a German shepherd named Maxx, was able to lead the Firefighters to both children and they were rescued as well.

    “The little boy was not breathing when they brought him out. They put a mask on him, he came to,” said Dover.

    “We ran over next door to see where the sound came from and you could see the flames coming out,” neighbor Chip Dover said.

    “We were banging on the windows,” “I pulled on the front door enough to pull the latch right off of it. Nothing happened.”

His son joined him and the two threw a chair through a window and kept breaking windows.

Their hands blackened by smoke and soot, Dover and his son were finally able to locate the wife.

    “We didn’t hear anything anymore, so then we went to the next window, smashed that one out and I pulled (the trapped woman) out of that window,” Dover said.

Seminole County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Dennis Lemma said once she was out of the house, the deputy, tried to go right back in to rescue her children.

    “Her primary concern was to get back in there and to rescue her children,” he said. “She’s an absolute trooper. She’s a hero within our organization and her actions tonight demonstrate that behavior.

    “We’re very proud of her.”

 

Emergency personnel at the scene were able to restrain the deputy while firefighters rescued her children.

He commended Dover for his actions, saying it was “a really heroic act on the part of the neighbor.”

All four members of the family are hospitalized and listed in critical, but stable, condition.  The dog is being treated for smoke inhalation and is expected to make a full recovery.