The department received a call just after 12:30 p.m. of a possible townhome fire on the 12400 block of Eagle Street N.W., and a dog still inside.
According to the fire department run report, on arrival firefighters found moderate smoke coming from the middle of the two-story townhome unit.
A small fire that was found in a large fish tank unit almost self-extinguished when the heat from the fire cracked the tank glass causing the water in the tank to gush out, the run report states.
But the fire was very sooty and there was a large amount of trapped black smoke upstairs, according to Capt. Tim Gilsrud of the department.
When fire crews went upstairs they found a large, 130-pound dog hiding in a closet, Gilsrud stated in his report.
The dog was breathing, but firefighters had to get a leash from the owner to remove the dog, he said.
The homeowner, Jeffrey McCann, and waiting Allina paramedics, who were both basic animal rescue training certified, used blow-by oxygen to treat the dog and a trickling fire hose to wash the soot off the dog.
According to the fire department run report, McCann had been gone for about an hour to take one of his two dogs to the vet and he found the smoke in the townhome when he returned and opened the garage door.
The fire started when halogen lamps on top of the fish tank malfunctioned, Coon Rapids Fire Marshal Todd Williams said.
The smoke and soot left the townhome uninhabitable, he said.
(ABC Newspapers - May 30, 2012)
