Hero dog alerts owners to fire at Washington home: 'I love her to death'

ARLINGTON, Wash. -- A dog owner in Washington said his beloved pet likely helped saved his neighbors' lives.

A fire broke out early Friday morning at a property in Arlington, a city near Seattle.

The dog sensed something was wrong when she looked out a window and quickly alerted her owner.

It was the middle of the night when the barking began.

"Normally, I just tell her, yell at her to go to sleep, you know? We were both in bed sleeping, because it was 3 o'clock in the morning," said Douglas O'Connor II, the dog's owner.

But this type of bark was unlike one he'd heard before.

"Loud, screaming-type bark. It was totally different than her just barking at a usual bark. It was totally woke us both up. Something's wrong," O'Connor said. "She was trying to tell us something."

Lucy, a 3-year-old Australian Shepherd and Labrador mix was among the first to notice a fire at the home across the street.

She was in the bay window, just continuing barking," O'Connor said. "It woke my wife up, and she opened the curtains, and she, you know, said, 'Honey, there's a fire over at Doug's.'"

Lucy's owners called for help and firefighters arrived to extinguish the flames.

"The flame went out of control, and then it was just a blaze and the whole side of the building was on fire," O'Connor said. "I'm just glad that nobody was hurt."

Thankfully, the fire only impacted the homeowner's workshop.

"Firefighters said another 10 minutes, that could have reached the house. So that was a little scary," O'Connor said.

Officers praised Lucy's quick actions on social media. It is clear Lucy was a big hit with the first responders.

"I think the fire department and the police officers just fell in love with her," O'Connor said.

And her owner couldn't be more proud.

"She's just a good dog. She's really one of a kind. I love her to death," O'Connor said.

There's still no word on what caused the fire.