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There's a lot more to this job than coaxing kitties out of trees.
Firefighters come to the rescue of all victims in all
circumstances. Pictured above is Oklahoma City firefighter
David Carter who saved this "damsel in distress" from
a catastrophic tornado in May 1999.
(Photo: Associated Press)
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3a.
Firefighters Find "Dead Dog" in Blaze and Bring It Back to
Life
Editor's note: While we were composing this article about Las
Vegas firefighters who rescued a dog from certain doom (3a), we
got word that Clark
Co. firefighters rescued a second dog from another
fire only 10 miles away (3b). I'd just
like to say that the world is an OK place when people are saving dogs faster than we can write about 'em!
LAS VEGAS, Nev. (USA) — An
accidental fire last Saturday at 1705 Neptune Drive was quickly
extinguished by the Las Vegas Fire Department at around 12:30pm. One
46-year-old man (the owner of the house) was treated on the spot for minor
smoke inhalation. But when firefighters crawled through the burned
house to investigate, they found a surprise. Laying lifeless on the
floor of the 1-story wood frame/stucco house was a 50-pound Pit Bull who
had apparently succumbed to the smoke. Rescuers pulled the pooch
outside where they began to administer CPR by undisclosed means (either
they employed special breathing apparatus—which would require the use of
oxygen tanks; or they performed mouth-to-snout—which
would require the use of breath mints afterward ...a whole lot of breath
mints). Las
Vegas Fire & Rescue stated that by the time firefighters left
the scene, the dog was up and walking and was able to eat and drink. 
3b.
Firefighters Rescue Dog from 2-Story Blaze
Where: Laughlin Way, Las Vegas at the home of Gary Markham.
When: Thursday, June 20, 2002
What: A 2-story fire causing $100,000 in damage. No one was
injured.
Why: Electrical malfunction.
Who: 25 firefighters from Clark County battled the blaze for half
an hour.
The Rest: The picture below says it all. Mr. Markham (who was not at home
at the time when the fire occurred) is
reunited with his pooch. (Photo: John Locher / Las
Vegas Review-Journal)
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4.
The One You'll Never Forget
DAVIS BAY, B.C. (Canada) — In order
to fully understand what happened on May 20, 2002 at Sunshine Coast,
British Columbia, we'll have to take a quick trip back in time about 350 years to
Maharashtra, India. For those of you whose time-machine is in the shop,
you might do just as well to take a train to Raigad. There you'll
find the tomb of the great warrior King Shivaji, admired for defeating the
tyrants who had kept India in darkness for centuries.  At
Shivaji's tomb, you might notice a monument to a little dog named Waghya
(no relation to our own Senior Editor Wags, of course).
As
history records it, Waghya was Shivaji's inseparable companion, and to this day, the dog is known as the epitome of loyalty and
eternal devotion. After the king died in 1680, the royal pooch was
devastated. It is said that when Shivaji's body was being cremated, the dog
leaped onto the pyre and immolated himself. And now back to the
21st century...  70-year-old
Elsie Campbell may not have led armies, but she did have one thing in
common with King Shivaji: she had a loyal dog.
On May 20, Ms. Campbell's
pooch, a 6-year-old Maltese-Poodle mix named "Asa", was outside
in the back yard when the house erupted in flames with the woman inside. The
Province reports that one neighbor rushed to grab Asa while another
neighbor forced open the back door of the burning home in an attempt to
save Ms. Campbell. Asa dashed past both of them and leaped into the
blaze. Deputy fire chief Bill Krasnikoff said that by the time
firefighters arrived, the house was an inferno. "The whole house was
fully involved and we couldn't put anyone inside it," he said.
"There was a lot of toxic smoke from the burning contents and the
asphalt shingles." Neither Elsie nor Asa ever came out. Back to
350 years ago, in the time of Shivaji and Waghya, an English poet wrote an
interesting piece. The piece, entitled: Exequy on
the Death of a Beloved Wife, could have served as a fitting
epitaph for Waghya, and could also have reflected the last thoughts that
went through the little Poodle Asa's mind as she threw herself into the
burning house: My
little world! That fit of fire
Once off, our bodies shall aspire
To our souls' bliss: then we shall rise
And view ourselves with clearer eyes. Stay
for me there: I will not fail
To meet thee in that hollow vale. §§§
Back to
Part 1: Fire Alarms Fail, But Count on the Dog
Part 2: Firefighter of the Year is a Mutt
Headlines
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