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Teens help rescue dog from fire that damaged three homes in South Weber

Posted at 1:56 PM, May 06, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-07 00:00:45-04

SOUTH WEBER, Utah — A South Weber home was destroyed in a fire that damaged two other nearby structures Friday, and some teenagers are receiving praise for their efforts to rescue a neighbor's dog.

The fire happened around 12:30 p.m. near 100 E Harper Way, and the first units were on scene within 10 minutes of the blaze being reported.

When fire crews arrived, the roof of the first home had already collapsed. Wind carried the fire to an adjacent home to the west, which sustained significant damage to the garage and attic. Another nearby home sustained severe heat damage.

A brush fire also broke out nearby after the wind carried an ember away from the main blaze.

Dozens of firefighters from six agencies responded to put out the fire. The damage to the first home is estimated at $500,000.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, and authorities said at this time there is no reason to suspect arson.

"There's a couple things that the fire marshal will be investigating to try and understand," said Fire Chief Thomas Graydon of South Weber City Fire. "We do have a team coming from Salt Lake City which is gonna bring out a dog that has the ability to sniff for fuels and anything else, just to cover all of the bases."

Two families were displaced by the fire, and no injuries were reported. Matt Petty and Cason Sawyer helped prevent potential injury to an animal.

"The fire was just huge at that point," Petty said. "...a woman came over and asked if there was a dog back there, and so we started whistling and calling the dog."

The teens rushed toward the fence as the fire raged on.

"It was a big fire and we couldn't really see anything," Sawyer said.

It was hard to see, and getting hot.

"We could feel it," Petty said. "We were 40 feet away and we could feel it. It was pretty hot."

The teens say the dog was scared at first and kept trying to hide, but eventually they were able to calm it down and help it get over the fence. When the family who owns the home returned, their first question was about the safety of their pet.

"They were definitely relieved, I'm sure they probably expected the worst, so we're glad we were able to find their dog," said Deputy Kevin Rose of the Davis County Sheriff's Office.