PHOTOS: Eighteen pets were rescued from the basement of a Salt Lake City home after it caught fire Saturday morning, leaving four adults without a home.
At 7:50 a.m., firefighters with the Salt Lake City Fire Department were alerted to a basement fire near 500 N. 1400 West. When crews arrived, the basement was very smoky, making it hard to find the pets. Once the smoke began to clear out, crews were able to locate the pets. A pet bird didn't make it. Captain Tony Stowe with the Salt Lake City Fire Department said:
The dogs and the cats were loose, and there's rumor that the cockatoo may have had a little bit of an attitude problem... it wanted to fight the firefighters, trying to protect its environment."
The Red Cross stepped in to help, providing the four people displaced with lodging and necessities.
"We had a couple hours that we were on the scene performing some salvage and overhaul and pulling those animals out of there, and making sure nothing further spreads," Stowe said.