Arkansan's dog alerts him to fire, allowing him to escape before blaze destroyed trailer

The Sentinel Record/Richard Rasmussen TRAILER ENGULFED: Members of the Lonsdale and Morning Star fire departments extinguish a trailer house fire at 354 Rigsby Loop on Friday. Eight firefighters from each department responded to the fully engulfed fire around 9 a.m. and had the flames controlled in less than 15 minutes. The probable cause was attributed to a wood stove fire which resulted in the total loss of the structure and belongings.
The Sentinel Record/Richard Rasmussen TRAILER ENGULFED: Members of the Lonsdale and Morning Star fire departments extinguish a trailer house fire at 354 Rigsby Loop on Friday. Eight firefighters from each department responded to the fully engulfed fire around 9 a.m. and had the flames controlled in less than 15 minutes. The probable cause was attributed to a wood stove fire which resulted in the total loss of the structure and belongings.

A dog named Angel lived up to her name Friday when she alerted her owner of a fire that destroyed his mobile home, the Hot Springs Sentinel-Record reported.

Garland County resident Eddie Makin told the newspaper that he was getting ready for work about 9 a.m. when the 15-year-old fox terrier scratched at his bedroom door. Makin said he opened the door and saw heavy smoke in the hallway of his Lonsdale home.

Realizing the trailer was on fire, Makin jumped through the window with Angel tucked under his arm, landing a 9-foot jump barefoot in the icy grass, according to the Sentinel-Record.

Makin said he managed to grab his wallet, keys and some clothing, but the home was a total loss, the fire department told the newspaper. The trailer's heating system was said to have caused the fire.

"She's special," Makin said of Angel. "She was abused and homeless, but she just jumped in my truck one day, and she's been with me ever since."

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