PLANTATION, FLA. (WSVN) - Sirens blared through a Plantation neighborhood as a home went up in flames, claiming the lives of two pets.
Plantation Fire Rescue units arrived at the scene of the fire at 1520 SW 68th Ave., Wednesday morning.
7Skyforce hovered above the scene as the fire burned through the roof.
For at least several minutes, no one saw the flames shooting through the Monterrey family home. No one, that is, except neighbor German Posada’s dog, Nala.
“I was working, and she was barking and barking, and I went outside and saw the smoke,” said Posada.
Flames that, firefighters believe, sparked in the home’s garage, were apparently caused by a golf cart that was plugged in and quickly spread.
As the smoke billowed from the roof of the house, Posada said, he called 911.
Thankfully, Nala’s barking got her owner’s attention before the flames spread to the entire home.
Fire crews were able to knock down the fire, which saved the rest of the structure and surrounding homes.
“There was tremendous amount of fire in the garage, is where most of the fire was when we got here,” said Plantation Fire Rescue Lt. Aston Bright.
“I was here, but I didn’t know what was going on,” said Cherly Taylor, who lives across the street.
Taylor said she rushed outside briefly when she heard the commotion.
“When I saw all this, I just stayed inside. I just figured, you know what? They don’t need me,” she said.
No one was home when the fire broke out, and there were no injuries reported, but the family’s dog, Chloe, and their pet goldfish died in the fire.
Fourteen-year-old Blake Monterrey said he was at school at South Plantation High when the fire ignited. He said his parents rushed home from work.
“And then my mom went to baseball practice, and she picked me up early, and then I came home and I saw what happened,” said Blake.
When asked what he was feeling at the time, the teen replied, “I mean, really overwhelmed with everything that happened, so it’s just a mess.”
But the family would not face it all alone. Blake’s teammates, along with friends and neighbors, heard what happened and decided to take action.
“I went and got black trash bags and came over to them to help them out a little bit,” said neighbor Yasmin Pearson.
“When he left practice, we figured out what happened and after practice, we all just came and started helping take stuff out of the house and put it in cars so he could have his stuff,” said teammate Austin Bogen.
“That’s what friends do, ’cause he’s important, he’s important to us,” said another teammate.
“I love you all. You’re my dawgs,” said Blake. “I’m definitely pretty loved, you know, supported. Yeah.”
It was an exhausting day for the firefighters who responded, with temperatures well into the 90s.
While the fire appeared to start in the home’s garage, the official cause remains under investigation.
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