How South Carolina Firefighters Rescued 8 Puppies From a Burning Building
Courtesy of Colleton County Fire-Rescue
Few things are more heroic than firefighters saving a puppy from a burning building—except maybe firefighters saving eight puppies from a burning building.
That's exactly what happened in the tiny hamlet of Jacksonboro, S.C., on June 21, when Colleton County Fire-Rescue was called to a structure fire. A yard trash fire had spread to a wooden storage building.
Arriving on the scene, crews got to work on the blaze, but they immediately knew something was different.
"As they were working, [firefighters] could hear whining coming from the building," Chief Barry McRoy tells Daily Paws. "The structure was built elevated off the ground. Once the fire was out, they were able to look under the structure and that's when they found the puppies."
Great job by Stations 2, 6, & 9 yesterday on Campbell Hill Rd in Jacksonboro. Not only did they quickly bring the structure fire under control, but they saved these 8 puppies that were under the building and suffered from smoke inhalation. More info at https://t.co/BPRVHCZ8Zd pic.twitter.com/W5niqV5OGx
— ColletonFire (@ColletonFire) June 22, 2022
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In all, firefighters pulled seven puppies from the space under the charred structure. The puppies were placed inside the ambulance that had responded with the fire crews, and the pups were wrapped in blankets and given oxygen to help perk them up.
Colleton County Animal Services arrived and officer Ashley Preacher took possession of the puppies, who were a litter born to a stray mother. When Preacher arrived, she inspected the area personally and located an eighth puppy under some equipment. The owner of the property didn't even know they were there.
With everyone alive and apparently unharmed, Preacher collected all eight pups and plotted what to do with them for the night.
"I wound up taking them home with me," she tells Daily Paws. "My heart couldn't bear the thought of them in a kennel all night, so I brought them home, gave them all a good bath and kept them warm."
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The puppies were extremely dirty and covered in soot, but the experience had otherwise left them unharmed. In the morning, Preacher transported them to Animal Services, where they were examined and then transferred to a local animal shelter that places animals in foster homes.
Within 24 hours, Preacher reports, two of the puppies had already been adopted.
