Dog credited with alerting owner to early morning fire that destroyed Embden home

EMBDEN — A dog is credited with waking its owner and alerting him to an early morning fire Wednesday that destroyed the man’s mobile home, Anson Fire Chief Stacey Beane said.

The fire started just before 3am at 30 Embden Pond Road and was confined to the home. The only man who lived there had working smoke alarms but was first alerted to the fire by his dog, she said.

“(The dog) probably saved his life,” Beane said.

The man escaped unharmed with his dog, but the door to the house was left open and the animal may have come back inside, she said. The dog was missing and she suspects he was killed in the fire.

“We don’t know if the dog returned or died in the fire,” Beane said.

Extremely cold temperatures overnight hampered firefighting efforts, she said.

“Our gear tends to freeze when wet,” she said. “Hands get really cold because your gloves are wet…they’re freezing.”

In addition to Anson, fire crews from Madison and Starks also responded to the scene.

The cold may also have been part of the cause of the fire, as Beane said the owner told authorities he used an electric heater overnight.

The state fire marshal’s office is investigating the cause.

Fire crews cleared the scene at 6 a.m. The American Red Cross is involved in relocating the owner, Beane said.

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