Stories of humans who go above and beyond their duties are important reminders that in a world full of selfishness and greed, kindness (and heroism) still has a chance to grow and thrive somewhere.
Impossible? Just take a look at this incident.
A blaze of fire suddenly broke out at a house in Santa Monica, California, but fortunately, the owner of the house was not inside.
At least, it gave the firefighters a sigh of relief, right?
Not yet.
When the owner of the house, Crystal Lamirande, returned from a local coffee shop, she froze on her tracks and couldn’t speak. She was just so shocked at what she is seeing. But what made her heart race, even more, is the fact that her dog, Nalu, is still inside the burning house!
She quickly informed the firefighters and pleaded to save her poor and terrified dog. In an attempt to save Nalu, Crystal and her neighbor attempted to rescue him, but they can’t bear the blazing fire and the thick smoke surrounding the house.
Nalu is a 15-pound, ten-year-old Bichon-Frise and Shih-Tzu mix, and according to Crystal, she treats her dog as if it was her own child. She usually brings Nalu wherever she goes, and the only time she didn’t is this time when the tragedy happened, which made her really feel guilty.
A firefighter named Andrew Klein was able to save Nalu from being totally consumed by the fire — but the dog was found unresponsive. Others would probably give up and attend to the other immediate tasks — but not this fireman. Wasting no time, Andrew immediately administered a mouth-to-snout resuscitation on Nalu for 20 minutes.
This moment is as intense as the blazing house behind them, and while Crystal and a couple of people nervously watches, a short silence took over. Moments later, Nalu began breathing and coughing, making everyone happy and teary-eyed. At last, Nalu has breathed a sigh of relief (literally).
With this, Crystal couldn’t thank Andrew enough for what he has done and so grateful for this heroic act. She is also equally thankful to the firefighters who have put their lives on the line to put out the fire.
Nalu was then brought to the VCA Los Angeles Animal Hospital to receive additional diagnoses and treatments. Meanwhile, the authorities are now preparing to start an investigation about the cause of the fire.
With no place to call home, Crystal found an apartment where she and Nalu would temporarily settle while making sense of the tragedy and plan where to go from there. But Crystal is still thankful because the tragedy gave her a new perspective in life: that even with a great tragedy, there is always something to be grateful for. And a burnt house is not enough to blur her sense of gratitude for everything in her life.
Source: Nicole Pelletiere via ABC News