LONG HILL — LONG HILL -- The family dog alerted three township residents to a fire in their home that left each of the three injured and claimed the lifes of other family pets including a parrot and some snakes, police said.
Police and firefighters responded to the home on River Road in the Millington section of the township at 11:24 a.m. and were able to contain the fire to a first floor bedroom, according to a press release from Police Chief Daniel Hedden.
The homeowner, Darcie Stratton, 63, her husband Richard, 43, and son Alexander Corbin, 31, were transported to St. Barnabas Hospital in Livingston by members of the Long Hill First Aid Squad for smoke inhalation. Richard Stratton was also treated for minor burns before all three were released.
All three were at home when the family dog began barking, alerting them of the fire, according to Hedden, who said the fire is believed to have ignited from an electrical outlet in the first floor bedroom.
In the wake of the fire, firefighters found that exotic snakes and a parrot had perished, Hedden said.
Firefighters with the Millington and Stirling fire companies along with the Veterans Administration Fire Co. responded to the fire. No further details were available.
