Dog Alerts Owner To House Fire, Amazon Driver Helps Rescue Woman

STREET, MD — An Amazon driver and a dog are being credited with saving an 84-year-old woman's life Wednesday.

Around 11:13 a.m., the woman was home alone in her basement when she heard her dog barking. As she went to investigating, she saw smoke through a window. When the woman went upstairs to see what's happening, she saw through the front door that a fire had broken out on her front porch, officials reported.

The woman then opened the back door to let her two cats escape from the home, which is located in the 100 block of Creek View Court. At the same time, an Amazon driver saw the fire and called 911. The driver saw the woman trying to escape through a sliding glass door at the side of the home and helped pull her out. The woman's dog was able to escape, too, according to the Maryland Office of the State's Attorney.

Nearly three dozen firefighters from the Whiteford Volunteer Fire Company and Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company helped battle the blaze. It took them approximately 20 minutes to gain control of the fire.

Investigators have determined that discarded woodstove ashes sparked the fire. The one-story single family home experienced an estimated $250,000 in loss of contents and structure damage.

The state fire marshal's office reminded residents to treat all ashes and coals as hot ashes, even if they think they had enough time to cool off.

"Take care to dispose of them wisely. Your house, deck or garage is an unsafe place to store ashes. Store cooled ashes in a tightly covered metal container and keep it outside and at least 10 feet from your home or nearby buildings," the state fire marshal's office stated.

The Office of the State Fire Marshal recommends residents do the following with ashes and coals:

• Do not discard your ashes into any combustible container such as a paper or plastic bag, a cardboard box or a plastic trash can.
• Do not place ash containers on decks, porches or in garages.
• Put ashes into a non-combustible metal container with a lid.
• Pour water into the container to make sure the ashes are cool.
• Keep your can outside the home, away from your fireplace or stove and anything combustible.
• Teach all family members to handle ashes from your fireplace or wood stove safely.