Police: Dog Alerts Girl of Laundry Room Fire

A homeowner's daughter who was home Tuesday when a fire on Grannis Avenue was alerted to the blaze by the barking of the family's dog, police said Wednesday.

The fire was extinguished from chlorine in the house's pool by two officers of the , according to Det. Jason Kohn.

Kohn said Sgt. Mike Rolph and Ptl. Ryan McKay got to the home on 51 Grannis Ave. and extinguished the fire in the laundry room by filling up empty garbage cans with chlorine from the above-ground pool in the backyard.

Kohn said Rolph and McKay first tried to knock down the fire with the extinguisher, but the fire was too strong. After several trips back and forth, the fire was extinguished with the chlorine, Kohn said.

The fire was contained to the laundry room and left significant damage, police said. No injuries were reported, according to the police.

According to Kohn, the homeowner's daughter, who appeared to be in her teens, was the only one home at the time. She noticed the fire after her dog was repeatedly barking.

"She initally ignored the dog, but then when she finally went to go see what the dog was barking at, the dog was actually barking at the fire," Kohn said. "The dog was the first one to alert her and then she called 911."

Kohn said that the fire started from a laundry basket that was placed on top of an electric stove. The basket melted and the laundry caught on fire.

Kohn said that the heating element on the stove ignited the fire, but it is still unknown what exactly caused the fire.

The fire is currently being investigated by the Cedar Knolls Fire Department.