House fire in Cape Coral leaves homeowner hospitalized, several dogs dead

A tragic cooking incident in Cape Coral has left a homeowner in critical condition and claimed the lives of six dogs.

The fire broke out Sunday morning at a residence located at Southeast 19th Lane and 15th Place.

Firefighters responded to a call about a residential structure fire around 11 a.m. Cape Coral Fire Department officials said they arrived on the scene to find the house engulfed by flames and smoke.

“They arrived on scene, they did find that there was fire and smoke in the residence,” said a Cape Coral firefighter. “They began their fire attack, and they began a search on the residence, where they did find one person and multiple dogs who they were able to move from there.”

The homeowner and her nine dogs were found inside the residence. Firefighters tried to revive the dogs, but unfortunately, only three survived.

“They were brought out of the home unconscious, but firefighters were able to use pet oxygen masks and revived the dogs, and so they have been released,” said a firefighter.

The Cape Coral Police Department, Fire Department and Lee County Animal Services all responded to the scene and worked together to manage the fire’s aftermath.

“As far as I am aware, it does not appear that there were working smoke alarms in the home,” said a firefighter. “Especially with this new spring forward that tends to be in the fire services, it’s time to remind everybody to change your clocks, change batteries in working smoke alarms. It’s substantial how much of the impact they have on saving lives during fire.”

According to the National Fire Protection Association, a home or residential fire is reported every 95 seconds in the U.S., with cooking being the leading cause of injuries from these fires.

The condition of the homeowner remains unknown as authorities continue to investigate.