Man's Best Friend: Dog Saves 150 People in Bengaluru Apartment Fire

A dog can save a human life with unconditional love but did you know that even a pup could save people from potentially fatal fire accidents? An incident in Bengaluru on November 17 has proved that dogs are life-savers in more ways than one. A dog saved not just one, but all the residents of an entire apartment. Appu, a one-and-half year old Golden Retriever pup saved around 150 lives yesterday afternoon. Due to a short circuit in one of the flats, there was a fire accident in VMAKS Chalet apartment in Vasundhara Layout of Sampige Nagar, Electronic city, Bengaluru. The flat belongs to Vijay Pillai who was out on work when the incident took place. It was his 60-year-old mother who was home alone with the dog. While Mrs Pillai was resting in one of the two bedrooms, Appu started barking frantically. She was taken by surprise, since he is usually a calm creature. Just to check on why the dog was barking non-stop, she got up and came out, only to find fire and smoke spreading rapidly.

Soon the neighbors were alerted and the fire department was called in. It took 2 hours for the personnel to douse the fire. But, all thanks to Appu, not a single casualty has been reported. “We haven’t found the source of the fire yet. The gas cylinder hasn’t been affected. We guess it might either be a short circuit in the refrigerator or the geyser in the bathroom. Thankfully, none were harmed. We have successfully put out the fire,” said Nagesh, Senior Officer, Electronic City Fire Safety Department.

The apartment complex has 50 houses and 150 residents living in them. People haven’t stopped praising Appu who saved their lives. If not for the alert provided by him, the fire would have spread wide before people could have had any idea of it on the quiet afternoon. As of now, two flats have sustained physical damage where furniture was burnt. However, the people are safe.

“They say dogs are very sharp, they are man’s best friend. Today I found all of it true right before my eyes. I am now thinking of getting a dog myself,” said a resident of the same apartment who didn’t want to be named.​

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