15 cats rescued from Miami Twp. house fire

DAYTON, Ohio ( WDTN ) — Crews responded to working fire Thursday morning, where more than a dozen cats were rescued from the home.

The Miami Valley Fire District responded to the 4800 block of Joyce Drive to investigate smoke in the area. Upon arrival just after 11 a.m., they found a home on fire and upgraded their response to a working fire.

The fire was quickly put out, and firefighters moved their focus to the several cats in the home.

Battalion Chief Glenn Jirka says the homeowners were not home at the time of the fire, but up to 20 cats resided in the home. Crews were able to rescue 15 of them, with five still left unaccounted for. Two cats have since died.

The local Humane Society was called to the scene to help crews and the homeowners determine what to do with the cats.

No firefighters or civilians were injured in the fire.

October is Fire Prevention Month, and Chief Jirka reminds everyone to ensure their smoke detectors are working.

“We want to encourage everybody to make sure that your smoke detectors are equipped with fresh batteries and that you are testing them,” said Jirka.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

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