A Florida family is in mourning after the dog that saved them from a burning building tragically passed away. Rescue dog Zippy, a Jack Russell terrier, raised the alarm in the middle of the night, barking to warn the family that had taken him in that a fire was about to consume their home. However, though the family made it out unharmed, Zippy himself was not so lucky.
The house itself belonged to the Butler family. As Leroy Butler, who had been staying with his parents, explained to Bay News 9:
“The fire alarm was at the low beep and then Dad went to yelling and the dog was already barking. The floor was on fire. See, it was on fire once I went and got the kids. I'm running through fire trying to get them out of there. By the time we got from the hallway door to the kitchen right here, that whole ceiling dropped. It went black and flames come out the roof and all the windows start blowing out."
According to a CNN report, firefighters arrived at the home in Bradenton at around 2:00AM to discover that much of the house was already destroyed. As the City of Bradenton Fire Department explained in a Facebook post, “The family of four escaped unharmed, thanks in part to the family dog who alerted them to the fire. Unfortunately, the dog was later found deceased." Though they were able to get the blaze “under control” at around 2:16, the damage had already been done.
After a preliminary investigation, officials believe that the blaze began in the attic, probably next to an air conditioning unit. That news, however, will come as little comfort to the Butlers. As Leroy explained:
"We just got to start from the ground up again. Got to rebuild. Zippy was just a little Jack Russell terrier, a little black and white dog we adopted 3-4 years ago and he's just been the house pet. He was real helpful and we're going to miss him."