Hero hound called Mozart saves couple after Magill townhouse bursts into flames
A heroic hound called Mozart has saved a sleeping couple by barking when their Magill home burst into flames, while a Murray Bridge man is in hospital with serious burns after a dog sparked a fire by knocking over a candle.
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Mozart the Australian Cobber dog has saved the lives of his two owners in a Magill townhouse fire, when he barked to alert them of the fire that broke out in the early hours of this morning.
The occupants managed to escape the blaze, without injury, thanks to their heroic hound – alerting them.
Fire crews were called to Mann Court around 2am Thursday.
Crews controlled the blaze within half an hour and prevented the fire spreading to adjoining units.
Charlotte Smith learned that her mother’s Magill home had burned down this morning.
She said her step dad was charging batteries for remote-control cars to show her young son when the blaze erupted at 2.30am.
Ms Smith said she was grateful for their “courageous dog” Mozart, who saved her family.
“Luckily our family dog Mozart was there to save them in time. “
She said memories were lost in the fire.
“But that’s OK, because we have our family and Mozart.”
Nearby neighbour John McMahon was woken by a neighbour and alerted of the fire.
“I walked out around the back and saw the flames above the fence,” Mr McMahon said.
He said he began putting out the fire with a hose in fear the fire would spread to his property.
“I got a garden hose and started putting water on the fire for about half an hour, then the fire brigade took over.”
He said it took half an hour for the shock to set in about the fire.
“Just the reality of living next door to something that burnt.”
The damage bill was put at $230,000. The fire was deemed accidental, sparked by batteries charging in a makeshift shed on the veranda.
Meanwhile, a man has been flown to the Royal Adelaide Hospital with serious burns and a dog has died in a house fire at Murray Bridge. The fire is thought to have been sparked by the pooch knocking over a candle.
Fire crews were called to Old Swanport Rd just before 4am Thursday.
This is the dog who saved a Magill couple from their burning home early this morning @theTiser pic.twitter.com/h4ZCuP7zhZ
— Dixie Sulda (@dixie_sulda) July 9, 2020
The occupant, a 66-year-old Murray Bridge man, suffered burns to 25 per cent of his body. He was taken to the Murray Bridge Hospital, before being flown to the Royal Adelaide Hospital where he remains in a serious condition. The dog perished in the fire, which was in the outhouse on the back of the property. It cause about $10,000 in damage.
It comes a day after a home at Two Wells was destroyed in a fire that caused about $360,000 damage.
Another dog was saved in a blaze that broke out in Two Wells yesterday.
30 CFS firefighters were called to the house on Bailey Rd at Two Wells just after 1.30pm on Wednesday.
When crews arrived the house was fully engulfed in flames and the roof had collapsed.
The occupant was not home at the time of the blaze.
Fire Cause Investigators are looking into the cause. A red heeler dog, Mango, managed to escape the blaze without injury.