'True Heroes': Ottawa firefighters capture hearts of community by reviving dog at basement fire

An Ottawa fire crew is warming the hearts of community members after rescuing several dogs and reviving one that had lost all vital signs at the scene of a basement fire in the city's south side.

The Ottawa Fire Service received a 9-1-1 call from a resident reporting smoke coming from their neighbour's house last Thursday. When crews arrived at the scene and conducted several sweeps of the home, while no residents were in the unit at the time, fire crews did locate four dogs inside, including one that was VSA (Vital Signs Absent).

"When you think of protecting lives, that's obviously humans, but that includes animals as well," said Ottawa Fire Services Public Information Officer Nick DeFazio in an interview with Yahoo News Canada.

In their initial statement, Ottawa fire says all four dogs were brought outside and firefighters performed CPR and delivered oxygen, and efforts to revive the dog without vitals proved successful.

"All our frontline pump trucks are outfitted with a special oxygen mask designed for pets that we carry on our trucks, and we use this quite often," said DeFazio. "The CPR is something we know how to do and have performed on pets."

Firefighters contained the fire to the basement before it could spread throughout the home, and the dog previously rendered VSA was brought to an animal hospital, according to Ottawa Fire.

DeFazio says Ottawa is a popular pet town and concerns over pets in a home when responding to calls is common.

Ottawa Fire maintains a 'Save our pets!' partnership with the local humane society in which residents are able to get a free sticker they can attach to their home showing how many pets are inside.

"If they are at work and we show up and the sticker shows a two beside the dog, we know that when we are sweeping the home, there are two dogs inside the home," said DeFazio."

'You are heroes to me': Social media users express gratitude for lifesaving gesture

Ottawa residents praised the firefighters for "going the extra mile" to save the life of the unresponsive pet.

Another social media user chimed in saying, "You are true heroes to anyone who has ever needed you."

This social media user said what we were all thinking: "Ottawa fire fighters rock."

The heartwarming post by Ottawa Fire brought out the appreciation for all the service does to keep the community safe.