A brave rescue dog from Tennessee became a Fourth of July hero after she alerted her owner to a house fire next door and saving a family asleep inside.
Roux, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, was barking “frantically and unusually” at the front door of owner Jeff LeCates’ home in Franklin, about 21 miles south of Nashville, late Saturday night, according to a fire department press release.
When LeCates opened the door to investigate, Roux bolted outside and LeCates followed and saw his neighbor’s home on fire. LeCates banged on their door and woke up the family of three still inside, they escaped with their pets unharmed. LeCates used a garden hose to fight the flames until firefighters arrived.
Franklin Fire Marshal Andy King said consumer fireworks, which are illegal in Franklin, sparked the fire. Video footage showed that the fire began on the exterior of the home at about 10:20 p.m., an hour after the homeowner threw out fireworks with his trash and other combustible materials, King said.
The fire caused an estimated $50,000 in damages, according to the release. Roux and LeCates would have never found each other if not for the woman who lives in the home that caught fire. She is a dog groomer and the reason why LeCates adopted Roux 15 months earlier, the release said. She knew Roux was a similar breed to LeCates’ German Shepherd that had died. She helped LeCates adopt Roux, who needed a good home.
We fear to think of what would have happened to that family if not for the timely action of Roux the dog.