

West Jordan • A dog is being credited with helping rescue a 19-year-old man during a house fire early Friday morning.

West Jordan Fire Battalion Chief Reed Sharman said the fire was reported at 3:10 a.m. when a passer-by saw flames coming from the side of a home at 3172 W. 8565 South.

A mother and two children made it out of the house before firefighters arrived, but her 19-year-old son was still inside. Sharman said it was the family's dog, a toy poodle named Ted, who led emergency responders to the man.

"Two of our paramedics, Don Chase and Erik Andersen, had gone inside to search the structure, and when they opened the door, there was the dog. When they went to grab the dog, though, he ran downstairs," Sharman said.

"He stopped on a landing, looked back at our guys, waited for them to catch up and then ran down to the next landing," Sharman said.

The dog waited again for the paramedics to approach, then ran over to a basement couch where the man was found asleep. By that time, smoke had begun to fill the house.

Chase and Anderson woke the man and took him and the dog outside. The man was treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation and released. The dog was uninjured — though "grumpy," Sharman said.

Sharman said firefighters knocked down the flames within 10 minutes, but flames had gotten into the home's ceiling and walls, causing an estimated $30,000 to $40,000 in damage.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation, but Sharman said a leaking gas meter on the side of the home may have been a factor.