Chihuahua survives fire by hiding under couch in Montgomery County

Monday, January 07, 2013

Selena Armstrong was in tears after she was reunited with her puppy, Lucy



A Chihuahua named Lucy survived a fire by hiding under a couch in Montgomery County.

Selena Armstrong was taking a nap in her mobile home on Pine View near Sandy Spring on Friday afternoon when she was awakened by smoke detectors and noticed smoke coming from her heating unit.

"I opened the heating unit and it was like a rocket shooting flames up into the attic," Armstrong said.

Armstrong said she immediately ran outside, but her two dogs were trapped inside.

"We grabbed the water hose and it was useless. It was in the attic. It was too far," Armstrong said. "We couldn't find the dog. They kept making me get out. I got one [dog], the big one. I couldn't find the baby. She wasn't in her cage."

Firefighters went into the home searching for the chihuahua, but the roof came down on them. One firefighter's helmet broke and the debris trapped their hoses, but they escaped safely.

Everyone assumed Lucy had been killed until firefighters found her hiding under a couch three hours later. Other than needing some oxygen, Lucy was not hurt.

The assistant fire marshal said Lucy was lucky. The fire was in the attic and vented outside, which kept her from dying from smoke inhalation.

Lucy has been reunited with her grateful owner. Armstrong said her home was destroyed but all that matters is that she and her animals are safe.

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