KENTUCKY -- A two-alarm fire has claimed the lives of two "
The Danville Fire Department was called to 109 John W.D. Bowling Ct. shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday after neighbors noticed smoke coming from the roof of the house that they believed to be unoccupied and called 911.
According to Danville Fire Chief Ken Pflug, the fire originated in the kitchen area of the residence. However, the firefighter's entry into the home was hindered because of what Pflug called "hoarding issues."
"We had to pull out a lot of stuff out before we were able to enter the premises and put out the flames," said Pflug.
Once inside the home, firefighters quickly put out the fire and began to investigate the cause of the fire, which has yet to be determined.
Assisting the fire department were the Danville Police Department, Boyle County Emergency Management and Boyle County Animal Control, who were called in once officials realized the significance of the address.
Inside the home, firefighters discovered the remains of two dogs, which Pflug described as "Bull mastiffs" — each weighing up to 100 pounds — in a bathroom. It is unclear if the dogs died of smoke inhalation or some other cause.
The residence has been a topic of discussion on numerous occasions with city and county officials because of claims of animal abuse and neglect, of dogs being unsupervised and the dangers for neighboring residents if the dogs got loose.
The property is not fenced-in.
During a May 11 meeting of Danville City Commission, Dawn Walker, a concerned Garrard County resident and a breeder of Presa Canarios, asked city commissioners to do something about dogs left in the residence unsupervised.
André Brooks, who lives directly behind the residence on John W.D. Bowling Ct., said on Saturday that Boyle County Animal Control came "about a month ago and removed about 13 dogs from the house."
"I have a 2-year-old daughter and I was worried because those huge dogs would come jump up on the fence," said Brooks. "I had to talk to him a couple of times about the dogs."
Walker told City Commission in May that the man who resided at the residence, Christopher Pope, had a total of 36 charges against him for animal neglect and abuse.
Walker corroborated Brooks account, saying that the dogs were removed from the home several weeks ago. Seven of the dogs removed were housed at the humane society, while five were retrieved "by whomever was summoned to retrieve these dogs."
Brooks alleges the person who retrieved the dogs did not have any ownership papers, vaccination documents or registration for the five dogs.
"This has been an ongoing issue that I've attempted to work with several people over," said Walker in May.
"He previously abandoned six additional dogs and Heartland (Veterinary Clinic) rescued them," said Walker. "One of them had a heart condition and another tried to chew the other's leg off one because they had not been fed. I have a lot of issue with that."
Walker said the breed of dogs living at the home were "Presa Canarios."
"They are not for everybody, and the majority of them are not used in a good manner," said Walker. "They need to be socialized and need to be trained."
Walker said in May that the house was once again full of dogs and "uninhabitable for any human."
According to Walker, Pope was living at the Super 8 Hotel in Danville "with two dogs in his car."
"Because he cannot live in the house, he is staying at the hotel and the dogs have been left at the house," she said. "Animal control will tell you it's the worse case they've ever seen in Boyle County. The dogs have literally eaten the entire house."
City Attorney Stephen Dexter told Walker in May that animal control and animal abuse cases were not city issues and would need to be addressed by the county.
"We defer to the county for the enforcement of those animal abuse issues," said Dexter.
"I understand that," said Walker. "But the residence is in the city. You have neighbors who are terrified — number one, of the dogs, and number two, of any retaliation from this individual in terms of calling or reporting. You can smell the house from the road. They are 100-plus-lbs. dogs, who have not been socialized or tamed, they are hungry and have not been vetted. That is a problem that impacts this community. If they get out; if they are running loose; if one of the neighbors children are mauled; if somebody is bit; that is more than just an issue of neglect and abuse."
Dexter said while animal abuse issues are under the county's purview, if there are other code issues with the home, then it would come under the city's authority.
Mayor Mike Perros urged Walker to speak on the animal abuse issues with the county and have a discussion with City Manager Ron Scott to "drill down to the bedrock on this and figure out what we need to do to solve what sounds like an on-going problem that shouldn't be ongoing."
Dexter, who wasn't sure of the exact number, estimated that, per city ordinance, residences were permitted to own three dogs, but were not permitted to have a kennel, which is in excess of four dogs.
Kathy Preston, a resident in the John W.D. Bowling Ct. neighborhood, also spoke on the issue at the May 11 City Commission meeting.
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| Two of Pope's Presa Canario dogs. |
"We've put up with that for a year and a half to two years now, living in fear," said Preston. "I can't even walk to my mailbox or anything else. The city of Danville, the Humane Society, almost anyone in the office has not helped us in any way until recently. These 14 dogs in a 1,000-sq-ft yard. He'd open the door and let them out.
"There's no way these dogs deserve what they've been living in or that we deserve what we've been living in. And I'm here to say the city of Danville and everyone, the Humane Society, have dropped the ball on this one."
Perros requested a timeline to "resolve" the issue. Scott said the city had addressed several code issues linked with the residence, including the removal of abandoned cars on the street in front of the residence and said an investigation was underway.
"There are some police investigations underway that I'm not at liberty to discuss. So, there are efforts being made and that's all I'm prepared to say at the present time," said Scott.
Perros expressed his concern for the dogs and the situation. When Scott said he would contact the county to alert them of the problem, Perros said he empathized with those who would have to deal with the situation.
"That's going to be easy for them," said Perros. "I wouldn't want to walk into that house, but something needs to be done."
According to Walker, the owner of the residence is Norman McGill.
On Saturday, another neighbor, Christine Durham, 51, said she didn't think anyone was living in the home, but said she was worried about the dogs that were inside. This was before firefighters discovered the bodies of the two dogs in the bathroom of the residence about a half hour later.
Apart from the two dogs discovered, no other animal was found inside the home at the time of the fire on Saturday. However, the investigation is ongoing.
Fire investigator David Spanyer is in charge of the investigation. However, Pflug said if Spanyer suspected criminal activity at any point, the investigation would be turned over to Danville police.
(Central KY News - June 20, 2015)
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