Lucky Pooch Saved From Newport Blaze

A menagerie of animals died in a Newport Beach house fire, but a dog named Al survived the blaze with the help of oxygen from firefighters, a dispatcher said Sunday.

There were no reports of human injuries in the fire, which started at about 9 p.m. Saturday, said Newport Beach Fire Department dispatcher Mary Shatzel.

A “space floor heater placed too close to combustibles” started the fire, which caused an estimated $125,000 damage--$100,000 of it to the structure of the beachfront home of Patrick and Michael Glance, Shatzel said.

Al was reported in stable condition Sunday night at an animal hospital, where he was taken after Jeffrey Remmele, an engineer with the Fire Department, rescued the pooch.

“They gave him oxygen for 20 minutes and it just brought him right back,” said Shatzel, who was on duty at the time of the fire.

But two exotic snakes and a cat burned to death in the blaze, Shatzel said, and one snake has yet to be found.

A cat managed to escape the fire and required no first aid, she added.

At least nine people called to report the fire at 4309 Seashore Drive, which had completely engulfed both floors of the home when firefighters arrived, Shatzel said.