75 dogs killed in Texas boarding school fire

The owner of a pet boarding business in Texas, where 75 dogs died in a fire, said Monday he was heartbroken and mourning the deaths of the animals.

The dogs died of smoke inhalation after the blaze around 11 p.m. Saturday at the Ponderosa Pet Resort in Georgetown, a town of about 67,000 people north of Austin, firefighters said.

“I am emotionally overwhelmed by the accidental fire on Saturday night at our business,” Phillip Paris said in a statement Monday, according to NBC affiliate KXAN in Austin. “Fifty-nine families are affected and their best friends will not be coming home. As a dog owner, I feel their grief intensely.

The preliminary investigation gave authorities no indication that the cause of the fire was arson, but the investigation is continuing, the Georgetown Fire Department said.

Fire Chief John Sullivan called for patience.

“We want answers, and we want answers now, but we have to go through a process of clearly identifying the cause of this fire so that we can better learn from it and help prevent a future tragedy from happening. produce, ”he said on Monday.

When firefighters arrived at the site, the facility was completely smoky and all of the company’s dogs were dead, the fire department said.

Firefighters announced Monday that the process of reuniting owners with their dogs will begin.

Sprinklers are not needed at a business of this size in Georgetown, the fire department said. Sullivan said there could be changes to the fire code as a result of the blaze.

The fatal blaze occurred just days after a fire at a Florida pet adoption center killed 23 cats. Firefighters were able to save all of the dogs and some cats after Wednesday’s fire at the Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando, officials said.