A St. Elmo family is dealing with the aftermath of a devastating house fire that claimed the lives of several of their pets and destroyed more than half of their home Thursday afternoon.
The residents were not injured and firefighters were able to rescue one of their dogs.
It happened at 1:32 p.m.
in the 4000 block of Alabama Avenue. Quint 14 was first on the scene and found heavy smoke and fire coming from the front of the structure.
They established a water supply and started a defensive attack due to the dangerous conditions. Crews also worked to protect neighbors’ houses on both sides.
After the fire was knocked down, they were able to start an interior push to complete a search of the residence and no one was located. The residents were outside and safe.
They continued fire suppression operations and the blaze was brought under control in roughly 10 minutes.
A secondary search was completed and firefighters located multiple deceased pets (cats, dogs, birds). They immediately started working on a surviving dog and got him revived, reuniting him with his owners.
From there, crews focused on hot spots and assisted investigators who will be working to determine what caused the fire. Fire officials estimated that around 60% of the home is a total loss.
Mutual aid provided coverage at several of our fire halls while crews were on the scene. Quint 14, Engine 9, Ladder 5, Quint 3, Squad 1, Squad 13, Battalion 2, Battalion 3 (Red Shift), HCEMS, CPD, McAmee, EPB, CFD Supply, CFD Investigations responded.
A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family.
