Apart from firemen, there are not many people who will run towards a fire. But when a Seattle business caught fire last month, a group of co-workers ventured out to save their neighbors — who happened to be dogs.
When smoke billowed from The Dog Resort, a dog daycare in Seattle’s Lake City neighborhood, workers at PSR Mechanical ran across the street.
Greg Hagen was an employee of the HVAC company who ran the dog resort.
“You see smoke coming out of the building and the sounds of dogs, emergency responders, firefighters, police responding,” Hagen told CBS News. “So, it was a lot of noise, it was chaos. And it was one of those situations where we didn’t know exactly what to do, but we knew we had to help him.”
PSR Mechanical
Hagen said he and his colleagues joined forces with other members of the community, including employees of a nearby Mexican restaurant, to help save about 60 dogs.
“So there were about nine of us and we all took different roles. There were some of us who ran out there and caught the dogs, there were some of us who helped secure the yard so that…the little dogs couldn’t get back out into the street. The workers were looking after the dogs, playing with the dogs,” he said.
PSR Mechanical
PSR staff led the dogs into their yard as firefighters battled the blaze. “At this point, it was great to see, because a lot of dogs had settled there,” Hagen said. “It was like they were given a new play park. So, they started having fun and running all over our yard and it was great to see.”
They not only calmed the frightened puppies, but the anxious parents who came to pick them up. “They took their dog there that morning and saw it on the news and were just freaking out,” Hagen said, adding that her team helped pets reunite with their beloved dogs. “Just to see their faces when they saw their dogs, it was so emotional. We had a couple of couples who were close to tears. When you see people show up and see their dogs playing in the yard and it’s safe.”
Mayor Bruce Harrell
The dogs were unharmed in the fire and their neighbors at PSR hailed them as heroes. Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell visited both PSR and Acetunos Mexican Foods to thank the employees who helped rescue the dogs. He also gave them a letter of recognition.
“Yes, it was a chaotic moment, and I don’t want to go through it again, but we’re glad to help,” Hagen said.
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