Toddler Dies In Washington Fire, His Dog Huddled At His Side

SPOKANE, Wash. (AP/KDKA) - A toddler who died in a house fire was found with his dog and teddy bear next to him and authorities believe the dog tried to protect the boy, a spokesman for Spokane's fire department said Saturday.

The dog, a terrier mixed breed, also died in the fire that broke out at about 11:30 p.m. Friday, said the spokesman, Brian Schaeffer.

"They died together," Schaeffer said, according to the Spokesman-Review.

Three other children and two adults escaped from the blaze in Spokane's Hillyard neighborhood, he said.

A neighbor said he saw the flames and heard screams as he was getting ready for bed. He yelled for his wife to call 911 and ran outside to hook up his 150 foot water hose.

As people screamed a child was still inside, Good Samaritans did their best to try and put out the flames.

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The dog stayed behind in an attempt to protect the boy, firefighters believe, and the fire was so intense that it melted the metal on the frame of the boy's bed.

"There was no way to survive that," Schaeffer said.

Neighbors said the layout of the house probably made it especially difficult to battle the flames.

"The way the house is configured in there, it was probably impossible to get to him," Lori Rayburn said.

The battery in the house's smoke detector had been removed and it was not working, he said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation and police are investigating the child's death.

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