Firefighters Rescue Dog From Camp Springs Gas Leak

A call for a gas leak turned into an unlikely adventure in dogsitting for some Prince George's County firefighters, according to a fire spokesman.

On May 9, county firefighters responded to a call for a natural gas leak in the 7000 block of Berkshire Drive in Camp Springs, spokesman Mark Brady reported, after a gas line was struck and broken by a WSSC contractor.

Several homes were evacuated after a strong gas odor wafted through the air, Brady said, but when firefighters approached the home closest to the leak—there was no response at the door. The firefighters broke in triggering the homeowners' alarm and found a dog, Duffy. 

When one of the homeowners received a call about a "break-in" and then learned of the gas leak, he went home, concerned about their dog and found officials had evacuated the neighborhood, barring anyone from entering, while they dealt with the leak. Eventually, he was let into the neighborhood and when he arrived at home, he found the following note on a piece of cardboard:

There was a gas leak outside of your house & we had to break your door in to make sure no one was home. Once in, we found high levels of gas & had to get your dog outside to fresh air. She was scared at first, but came outside after some coaxing. She pee’d and pooped around noon & hung out with us at the fire truck. We put her back inside & gave her fresh food & water.

The residents shared their thoughts in a letter to their Prince George's County representative:

When my partner called me at work and read the note to me, I was amazed. The reason I was amazed is because I would not expect anyone to take care of a strange dog. In addition to them taking care of our baby, they opened all the windows for safety reasons. I truly give Captain D. Fletcher and his team an infinity amount of kudos for the work they did and the care that they showed by taking care of our baby and our home. This was truly going above and beyond the call of duty and I wanted to take the time out to say thank you. Thank you to the firefighters that stopped by and made it a point to watch out for our home as well as thank you to all of County Management for hiring and having such excellent professionals.

Fire Fighter/Medic Capt. Donny Fletcher and his crew from the Morningside Fire/EMS Station probably did not realize their note would be made public or that their efforts would have such a big impact on these Prince George's County residents.