Gary Sheriff Rescues Dog From Burning Car
GARY — Deputy Chief Dan Murchek of the Lake County Sheriff’s Department has rescued potential victims from fires before, but Saturday was the first time he ever did it from a burning car.
Murchek was on patrol on Cline Avenue about 9:30 p.m. when dispatch reported a car on fire near Burr Street on the Borman Expressway. Murchek said he was on patrol because the department was helping the Indiana State Police, which was shorthanded because of extra security needed for the Indiana State Fair.
He reached the scene in two minutes and saw two men standing near the car, which was burning pretty good under the hood and had started to spread to the interior of the car. As he was talking to the men and asking if everyone was out of the car, one said he thought his dog was still inside. He wasn’t sure if the dog had run out when the two men escaped.
Checking the car, Murchek could see the dog cowering on the floor behind the driver’s seat. The back door was locked and he tried unsuccessfully to break the window. His patrol car was too far away to retrieve the tool for breaking the window, so he opened the driver’s door, took a deep breath and tried to grab the dog.
The frightened dog shrank from him and snarled at him. With the heat of the flames making it impossible to stay in the car for more than three or four seconds, Murchek stepped outside to get another breath and decided to make one more try.
“I’ve been bit before, but I was going to try,” he said. “I said it’s now or never and got on my knees on the seat and reached into the back and grabbed the dog’s collar and his scruff and pulled him out. I was a K9 officer and I love animals, and I didn’t want to see him burn to death.”
He handed the dog, whose name is Bella, to the owner, John Manning, of Crown Point, who said Bella had been rescued by him seven years ago.
“I told him he’s going to have to change the dog’s name to Lucky.”
Traffic on the Borman was bogged down because of the car fire, and Murchek said several people witnessed the rescue and gave him a thumb’s up. For his part, Murchek said he was just checking to make sure his uniform wasn’t on fire.
“Part of this job is being at the right place at the right time,” Murchek said.
Source: NWI Times