AYER — Shortly after 1:30 a.m. on Monday, August 26, 2024, the Ayer Fire Department responded to a fire reported at the residence located at 8 Mulberry Circle.
Upon arrival, fire crews discovered a fire in the kitchen on the first floor of the residence. The homeowner had safely evacuated the building, but his dog was still inside.
In a statement posted on Facebook, the Ayer Fire Department reported that the dog woke the homeowner up, who then discovered that the second floor of his house was filled with smoke. Investigators noted that there were no working smoke alarms in the living area of the home.
Fire crews quickly extinguished the kitchen fire and checked to see if the fire had spread to other areas of the house. The dog was found on the second floor, suffering from smoke inhalation, and was given oxygen at the scene. The Ayer Police Department assisted the homeowner in transporting the dog to an emergency veterinarian in Westford. The dog is reportedly in stable condition.
“This incident was a near miss that could have had a very different outcome if not for the lucky and well-timed intervention of the family dog,” the Ayer Fire Department said in its statement on Facebook. “Every home needs to have working smoke alarms on every habitable level and within 10 feet of every bedroom. This homeowner was extremely lucky to survive the fire unscathed.”
Mutual aid was provided by fire companies from the Shirley, Littleton, Devens, Lunenburg, and Groton Fire Departments, who assisted at the scene, while an engine from the Westford Fire Department covered the Ayer station during the incident.
Mutual aid fire companies began clearing the scene around 2:15 a.m., with the last Ayer fire apparatus leaving shortly after 3:30 a.m.
The Fire Chief, Fire Prevention Officer, and an investigator from the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services Fire Marshal’s Office remained on site until approximately 5:00 a.m.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
