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Dog being rescued from house fire insists police officer put him on a leash first

Maybe there's such a thing as being too good of a boy.

Photo credit: Canva

Some dogs know they are never to leave the house unleashed.

Well-trained dogs are a treasure, and a dog named Oakley in Aurora, Illinois, has given a whole new meaning to the phrase "good boy." Despite the harrowing situation he found himself in, people everywhere are delighting in this rescue dog's almost-too-good behavior.

According to the Aurora Police Department, the four-year-old American Staffordshire Terrier was home alone on the afternoon of September 11, 2025, when a fire broke out in the home's attic. When police officers responded to a fire report, they found flames coming from the back of the home. Investigator Michael Ely and Investigator Jacob Leonard weren't sure if anyone was home, but they were informed there was a dog, and they forced entry through the front door. They didn't find any people inside, but they did find Oakley in a room with a gated doorway on the first floor.

@cbsnews

A family dog named Oakley led a police officer to his leash as the pup was being rescued from a house fire in Aurora, Illinois. Nobody else was inside the home and Oakley had no injuries. #aurora #illinois

When Ely removed the gate and coaxed Oakley to come with him, the dog immediately ran away through the smoky house—and right past the front door. As the smoke alarm blared, Ely followed Oakley, who went straight to his leash hanging on a hook by the back door. Oakley put his nose up to the leash, then sat down and waited dutifully for Ely to put it on him. As soon as the leash was secured, Oakley was good to go and Ely quickly led him out of the house to safety.

Ely told CBS News, "He ran right to that leash and kind of looked up at it, and I'm like, 'Okay, buddy. We'll put your leash on if that makes you feel better.' As soon as I put the leash on, he took off on me."

Here's the full footage shared by the Aurora Police Department:

Oakley is fortunate that the fire was upstairs and not immediately threatening his life, otherwise his good training may have cost valuable seconds getting out of the burning building. Since the video was shared, Oakley has become a viral sensation, with people in the comments celebrating his dedication to rules and routine:

"Awww... he's like, 'Mom doesn't let me go out without a leash.'"

"What a good boy, and good owners too. They've taught him the only possible way to go out through that front door is when to have your leash on."

"Firefighters: 'This is an emergency we need to evacuate.' Dog: 'No no you got it all backwards bro. It’s an emergency that I don’t have my leash.'"

"He was like, 'You ain't gettin' me in trouble. I got yelled at the last time I ran out the house without my leash!'"

"Oakley’s like, 'Dude, you are an officer of the law, and the law says LEASHES!'"

dog, leash, leash laws, dog rescue, good boy Dog leash is a must. Giphy

The homeowner is so thankful officer Ely was able to find Oakley and get him out of the house. They shared some details about the good pup with the Aurora Police Department:

"He is a rescue dog from a local organization called Players for Pits. He was adopted as a puppy by our family. He is 4 years old and is an athletic dog who loves to play and wrestle. He enjoys snuggling with us, snoring loudly as he sleeps, sunbathing, and eating peanut butter. We are forever grateful to Mike at the Aurora Police Department for saving our sweet dog."

Thankfully, the fire was put out, and despite Officer Ely's smoky coughs caught on camera after exiting the home with Oakley, there were no injuries to any people or pets.

Three cheers for Oakley, the goodest boy, and for the responding officers who risked their own safety to rescue the diligent pup and his trusty leash.

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Off duty school bus driver rushes into burning house to save 'his kids' on his bus route

The kids weren't home but he rescued their dogs.

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Off duty school bus driver runs into burning house on his route

When you work with kids, they often feel like your own. You're entrusted to care for them and protect them just as you would your own children. This protection factor doesn't end once the kids leave your classroom or step off of your bus. If you see one of your kids from work in trouble, it doesn't matter that you're outside of business hours, most will do whatever is needed to jump in and protect them.

While most people who work with children hope they never encounter a time where they need to jump into action, they remain prepared. Ohio school bus driver, Todd Morris had this theory tested when he was driving his personal vehicle off duty and realized one of the houses on his school bus route was on fire. Immediately, Morris knew students he drove to and from school daily lived in the house that was being engulfed in flames.

But turns out Morris isn't only a school bus driver, he's also former law enforcement and an Army veteran. The man didn't hesitate to come to a screeching halt and jump out of his truck to try to save the family inside.

man near flaming house Photo by Jen Theodore on Unsplash

Morris explains to Today what went through his mind when he saw the flames, “My heart just dropped. All I could think was, 'My kids. My kids are inside.’”

The schools in the area were closed due to extreme winter temperatures, so the former military member knew there was a big possibility that his students were inside. Don't worry, Morris called 911 before he ran towards a burning home. There was no answer at the locked door so Morris kicked the door in with the only thing on his mind being to make sure the kids were safe.

"I literally do call the kids on my bus, they're my kids. I watch out for them at least two hours a day. And I know every kid on my bus, every kid has a nickname," he tells News 5 Cleveland.

Fisher kids via GoFundMe

After kicking in the door, Morris looked around the house that was filled with thick smoke trying to make sure the kids were safe. Thankfully, the four children and their parents, Matt and Jordan Fisher were not home. Since school was canceled, the Fisher children spent the night with their grandmother so Matt and Jordan could go to work. But the home wasn't empty, while searching through the home, Morris came across the two family dogs, Lady and Cash.

Morris tells Today, "There was so much smoke I could barely see in front of me. It took me a second to orient myself and figure out which way I needed to go. The second floor was completely engulfed."

The Army veteran explains to the outlet that it was when he came back downstairs that he came in contact with the dogs, “They were staring at me like deer in headlights. They looked so scared."

One of the dogs, Cash is disabled so Morris had to carry him to his car. Both dogs got out safely and while the fire was put out in under two hours, the family lost everything. A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family recover from this devastating loss.

The Fisher family is thankful for the man's quick action and selflessness which helped save their beloved pets. They plan to rebuild on the same property with the funds that are raised. As for Morris, he doesn't think he did anything special, I was in the right place at the right time. I did what anyone else would do, with my background in law enforcement and the military," he tells News 5 Cleveland.

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Garbage men save couple and their dog from fire while out doing his rounds

"I saw a young woman screaming from the balcony and all I could think was that I needed to get to her as quickly as possible."

Keeleigh Seymour|GoFundMe

Garbage man saves couple and their dog from fire

There's nothing quite as terrifying to imagine as being trapped in a house fire. Most people are taught what to do if they smell smoke or a fire breaks out in their house. In fact, one of the biggest positives for encouraging closed doors in the home is the door helps keep the fire contained outside of the door for a longer period of time. This gives anyone trapped inside the room a chance to climb out of the nearest window or a longer window of rescue if the room has no escape.

One couple found themselves living this nightmare when their apartment caught fire while they were trapped inside with their dog. The situation could've turned into a much greater tragedy had it not been trash day. Tiffany Dupree, her partner Zac(corr) Braden and their dog Skye were stuck in their burning apartment in Tipton, West Midlands in England when a garbage truck drove by and saw the fire.

Steve Whitehouse and Kevin Marriott were the garbage truck workers who spotted the flames coming from the apartment and spotted Dupree screaming on the balcony. Instead of just calling it in, the garbagemen pulled their truck over and got to work rescuing the occupants inside without hesitation.

"I saw a young woman screaming from the balcony and all I could think was that I needed to get to her as quickly as possible, Whitehouse tells BBC Radio.

Upon seeing the woman, Whitehouse jumped out of his truck and scaled a wall in order to get to the balcony, pulling the woman out of harms way within seconds. When Dupree was safe, the garbageman turned his attention to the thick smoke coming from inside the apartment.

"The smoke was getting thicker. I called to anyone else who might be inside and could hear a young man shouting in distress for his dog. I managed to bundle up the dog in a blanket, jumped back down to the ground, and got the owner to throw the dog to me. I then went back up to help him,” Whitehouse explains to BBC Radio.

Keeleigh Seymour|GoFundMe

According to the Daily Mail, firemen believe the fire was started by an e-bike battery exploding while it was charging on the bottom of the stairs. Since the fire originated at the stairwell, it made it impossible for the couple to escape the blaze. Dupree is currently awaiting to be relocated by the council but in the meantime, the couple was only able to escape with the clothes they were wearing and their dog.

"'It was about 8 am when I heard popping and rustling sounds. I thought it was my dog, Skye, but he was asleep in the kitchen. I heard three bangs and as I opened the living room door there was a huge boom," Dupree tells Daily Mail.

Dupree and her partner don't live together, so it's only her things that need to be replaced, so her sister-in-law Keeleigh Seymour created a GoFundMe to help replace clothing and furniture.

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