An Orphaned Dog Due To A Fire At Lithgow

[dianed]

Did anyone see the Prime/Seven News item tonight about the ex school teacher loosing his life while trying to find his Dog at his burning house at Lithgow? The dog was in the back yard and has been taken to the local pound and looked in a terribly distressed state?

Edited June 19, 2010 by dianed

[poodlefan]

Just posted about it in rescue. A Whippet in Lithgow with no coat is not at all good. The poor bugger will be freezing as well as stressed.

[LouBon]

Did anyone see the Prime/Seven News item tonight about the ex school teacher loosing his life while trying to find his Dog at his burning house at Lithgow? The dog was in the back yard and has been taken to the local pound and looked in a terribly distressed state?

Yes I just saw that and am still teary. I hope to god that that man didn't sacrifice his life for nothing and that dog is adopted by a loving family. So sad, that dear man.

[Jed]

How awful - sends shivers down my spine, brings it all back.....you need to be so careful, I am so lucky. Will light a candle for him, and hope the poor dog finds a good home soon

[poodlefan]

How awful - sends shivers down my spine, brings it all back.....you need to be so careful, I am so lucky. Will light a candle for him, and hope the poor dog finds a good home soon

Get Whippet has contacted Lithgow Jed.. Whippet will be safe.

I just hope he/she gets a coat and soon!

[Baby Dragon]

Don't the pounds there have coats? Can somebody who lives near there arrange to get a coat to him? I'm happy to pay for it if somebody can get it to him.

[Andrea]

Poor Man! and Poor dog!! what a tragedy!!

Our rangers are lovely and the paging service is very efficient, and the amount of enquiries/calls have been many already. I have been told that the little dog is not being held at the pound, and that they will be trying to contact the gentleman's family prior to making any decisions regarding his future.

Im sure I have a coat here that should fit him, if it is needed. It has gotten to minus 5oC here overnight recently, so yes, if he was outside he would be freezing.

[flatchat]

Very sad news!! Hope little whippet finds a good new home.

[Andrea]

Just letting everyone know that Trim the Whippet is going to be taken in by Mr Breen's remaining family.

The Article below is from Saturday's local paper.

http://www.lithgowmercury.com.au/news/local/news/general/fire-spread-from-bedroom/1864689.aspx

Fire spread from bedroom

LEN ASHWORTH

22 Jun, 2010 08:19 AM

TREVOR Breen’s best mate and constant companion was his whippet dog named ‘Trim’.

When the home they shared in Ferro Street, Lithgow, erupted in flames in the early hours of Saturday Trevor’s first — and final — thought was to save his mate.

It was a selfless act of puppy love that was to cost him his life. Trevor went back into the burning house and never returned. His lifeless body was recovered by firefighters and defied the efforts of

rescuers to revive him.

Meantime, in the final irony, ‘Trim’ had escaped the house and was safe in

the yard while the life and death drama unfolded.

Around 12.30 am on Saturday 64 year old Mr Breen called the Triple 0 operator

to seek urgent fire brigade assistance.

He said his house was on fire and he was going back inside to try to find his

dog. He was warned to stay safely clear of the fire until the brigades arrived but

the concern for the missing dog was too much.

Lithgow and Lithgow West firefighters were quickly on the scene and within

minutes a team wearing breathing apparatus entered the house, battling thick

smoke and various materials obstructing some of the doorways.

They found Mr Breen lying on the floor in the living room where he had

apparently been overcome by smoke inhalation.

He was quickly carried outside but paramedics were unsuccessful in a

desperate attempt to revive him.

By this time the fire had spread from the front room to the roof.

The brigades had the fire under control in less than half an hour but

extensive damage had been caused to the brick cottage.

At first light senior fire investigators were joined by forensic police from

Bathurst seeking to find the cause of the deadly blaze.

It was determined that the fire had started in the front bedroom and

investigators said yesterday afternoon it was now believed the cause of the

blaze had been a cigarette dropped on to newspapers.

Mr Breen was an invalid pensioner who regularly required the use of a walking

frame to assist him in getting about. On Saturday morning the walking frame was

lying among charred rubble on the front lawn.

But there was to be one more cruel and peculiar twist to the sad story; late

on Saturday night, almost 24 hours after the fire another blaze was reported in

the same house.

Firefighters returned to the scene and this time found a pile of old

newspapers and magazines in a second bedroom had caught alight, possibly after

smouldering unnoticed all day.

This second fire was quickly extinguished.

Police are preparing a report for the Coroner.

* FOOTNOTE: It was not Mr Breen’s first encounter with a life threatening

house fire.

Some years ago he narrowly escaped from a fire in a residence he was

occupying at the time in a two storey terrace in Waratah Street.

This time around there was no such escape.