Jan. 08--BREWER, Maine -- Firefighters and emergency responders from all over the city headed to 269 Washington St. around 11 a.m. Sunday to fight a visible fire, and one rescued a dog from the building.
A small beagle named Camo was found hiding in a bedroom, Firefighter Brandon Randall said while giving the pet some oxygen.
"I found him between the exterior wall and the bed," the firefighter said. "His head was stuck under the bed but his body was sticking out."
Randall, an on-call firefighter, arrived about 15 minutes after other firefighters and "got the assignment to check the building for a dog," he said.
There was visible smoke when he arrived but the flames had been extinguished, the firefighter said.
Brewer fire Lt. Mike Mullen said when the first group of firefighters arrived at 11 a.m. smoke was pouring from all corners of an attached garage and flames were visible.
Firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the blaze and save the single-story framed house, he said.
"It's not livable" but "it's repairable," the lieutenant said.
Assistant Fire Chief Chris Dore did an initial investigation into the cause of the fire, and the state fire marshal's office is sending an investigator on Monday, Mullens said.
A young couple with children were at the home when the fire broke out and all escaped unharmed, but they were unable to get the dog out of the house, Mullens said.
The fire lieutenant spoke with the man, who said he has family living nearby, and was told about the dog trapped in the house.
When Randall arrived, Mullens send him in to look for little Camo.
"He was a little shaky but seems to be alright," the on-call firefighter said. "We gave some oxygen to him."
Brewer Fire Department purchased a pet oxygen mask kit in 2007 for $75.
"It's an oxygen mask just like the ones used on a person, but they're differently shaped," Fire Chief Gary Parent said at the time.
Copyright 2012 - Bangor Daily News, Maine
