Dog alerts Gastonia man to house fire
The resident of a Gastonia home that caught fire early Sunday didn’t have working smoke detectors.
Fortunately, the man who lived at the home had an alert dog.
After the dog’s warning, both man and dog were able to escape the fire with no injuries.
The fire started after midnight at a home on Cedar Avenue in Gastonia, just a few yards from Interstate 85’s exit 19.
Firefighters were summoned at about 12:44 a.m. When they arrived, they saw smoke pouring out the back of a one-story home. They entered the building and extinguished a kitchen fire in about 10 minutes.
The fire caused about $10,000 in damage and was sparked by a malfunction in the home’s heating system, according to Gastonia firefighters. Twenty firefighters were needed to control the blaze. No one was injured.
A fire department spokesman cautioned that a working smoke detector is the “first line of defense” against a house fire.
Gastonia residents who cannot afford a smoke detector can call 704-866-3355 to obtain one.
Cleve R. Wootson Jr.: 704-358-5046, @CleveWootson
This story was originally published February 21, 2016 at 5:08 PM with the headline "Dog alerts Gastonia man to house fire."