Dog Saves Vietnam Vet from a Fire in the Home

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Anyone who has ever owned a dog knows that if you care for your dog properly and show it some love, then you will get plenty of love and loyalty in return. There are plenty of cases that prove that this is the case, as dogs have come to the rescue of their owners in their hour of need. One such story is that of the dog who saved his veteran owner from a house fire. Brian Rand, a Vietnam Veteran, was sleeping soundly one night in his home in Beaufort County, Carolina. I Heart Dogs reports that a fire broke out and smoke began to fill the property. Rand didn’t wake up as he had not noticed the smell of smoke. Also, the fire alarms did not go off, so there was nothing to warn Rand of the danger. This could have led to him being overcome by smoke inhalation and him dying in the fire.

Fortunately, Rand had a loyal companion on hand to save the day. Without his beloved dog Curly coming to warn him that he was in grave peril, it is likely that Rand would have died in the fire and his house would have been burned to the ground. Despite Rand owing his life to his dog, Curly was not the original dog that Rand wanted. When he decided that he would like to adopt a dog as a companion for himself, he had decided that he was best suited to a small dog breed. However, he fell in love with Curly, who weighs a whopping 70 pounds, as soon as he saw him. Rand changed his mind about adopting a small dog and welcomed Curly into his home instead.

It was a good thing that Rand came to that decision because another dog might not have shown Curly’s loyalty. Curly was the first to smell the smoke and he knew that something was wrong. He went to Rand’s room to alert him to the danger and began nudging him with his nose. At first, Rand believed that Curly was simply alerting him to the alarm on his phone going off, which is something that he sometimes did. Suddenly, Rand realized that it was still the middle of the night and that Curly was alerting him of something far more dangerous.

Rand got straight out of bed to investigate. As soon as he reached the hallway, he saw the heavy smoke and realized the severity of the situation Taking Curly with him, Rand rushed outside and telephoned the emergency services. Fortunately for Rand and Curly, the fire station is on the same street as their home, so it took the fire department just four minutes to arrive. Despite their quick arrival, the fire had spread quickly throughout the house. According to fire experts, a fire can double every 30 seconds. In fact, Firex UK says that a fire can completely engulf a house in just four minutes. By the time the fire brigade arrived, around half of the property had been destroyed by the fire.

Although there was extensive damage to the house, Curly’s quick actions meant that many of Rand’s valuables were undamaged in the fire. This was something that Rand was truly thankful for, as many of his belongings were irreplaceable. For example, he had some belongings that were a reminder of the 32 months he spent serving in the Vietnam War. Despite the severity of the fire, Rand has stayed positive following the incident. He is extremely grateful that his loyal dog Curly saved him and believes that the most important thing is that they both survived the fire.

Rand was told after the fire that his smoke detectors were not working. The fire department explained the importance of having working smoke alarms in the home and said that he could have been alerted to the fire even faster if he had these fitted in his home. This is something that is important for everyone to note because whether you have a smoke alarm in your home or not is potentially the difference between life and death. Therefore, everyone should make sure that they have a smoke alarm in their home and check regularly that they are working.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission says that around two-thirds of death from house fires have been from homes that do not have a working smoke alarm fitted and that having a working smoke alarm fitted can reduce your risk of dying in a house fire by approximately a half. Now, Rand is planning to rebuild his home, and he has quite a task ahead of him as the house is not in great shape. He is unwilling to give up the home because he loves the land on which it is situated, and he has a good relationship with all his neighbors. Rand is a happy and positive man who is trying to make the most of the situation.

He showed his great sense of humor when he recounted the events of the night of the fire. Rand was so busy worrying about the fire that he did not realize that many of his neighbors had turned up to offer help. He was completely oblivious to the fact that he was wandering around outside his home wearing nothing but his underwear. He was embarrassed when he realized but has managed to laugh off this situation. On the grand scale of things, what he was wearing on the night pales into insignificance compared to his house fire. Rand will never forget what Curly did for him that night. No doubt it has increased his appreciation of having a dog, as taking a pet for granted is easy. Without Curly, the events of that fateful could have had a very different ending, and Rand and Curly may not have survived to tell the tale.