Family Dog Saves Owner From Fire
GRAYSLAKE, Ill. (STMW) - Mr. B, the Whalen family's three-legged beagle, is being credited with the fire alert that saved Troy Whalen Monday morning.
"Mr. B saved my life," said Whalen, Grayslake Central High School varsity baseball coach. Whalen was on a business conference call in the basement when "the dog was going crazy," he said, "He started making noise and barking annoyingly."
He muted the conference call after hearing a thump, and then he heard glass shatter.
"I thought someone was breaking into the house," he said, referring to his home at 318 Banbury Lane in Grayslake.
Whalen didn't smell smoke at first, but when he rounded a corner to the first-floor family room, "flames were just blowing through the window," he said. At first he tried to smother the fire with a blanket, but then realized it was too big. He called 911.
Mr. B had other ideas, running upstairs and hiding in a closest.
Whalen, who had knee surgery last week, went up and grabbed the dog and made it outside to find the whole back half of the house was on fire.
"I can't believe how fast it went up," he said.
Mr. B had been rescued by a neighbor's son, and when the son left the area, he left the beagle with his parents. The Whalens baby-sat the dog while the neighbors were on vacation. When they returned, they asked Whalen if he wanted to keep the dog because of his three kids. Whalen said yes.
Grayslake Fire Department Battalion Chief Jim Weidman said the Whalen house had heavy fire, smoke and water damage. He estimated damage to the structure at $250,000 and contents another $70,000. The cause is under investigation, but it started behind the garage near a wooden porch and a stack of logs, fuel for the fireplace.
Extra fire crews were called when the first firefighters on the scene saw fire was shooting out of the windows on one side of the house. A neighbor's siding wilted because of the heat.
Other fire departments on the scene included Libertyville, Lake Villa, Wauconda, Waukegan, Fox Lake and Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District.
Whalen said he was impressed by the speed of the fire department's response and how his neighbors immediately began helping.
Neighbor Jeff Blackburn said he couldn't believe how quickly the fire took off. "How fast it was burning was just amazing," he said.
He let the Whalens store some photographs and a wedding dress in his garage. Another neighbor, Paula Casey, was getting ready to go the store for some clothes and dog food and bowls for Mr. B.
"We're going to get some clean clothes and toothbrushes," Casey said. "Thank God he got out. Everything else can be fixed."
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