BREAKING NEWS! (well... sort of)

This just in... from Chief Eskimo Correspondent, Sir BLUE LeDoux of our Ninilchik, Alaska News Bureau. This story is a follow up to a previous posting mentioning how The Rios Family of Edina nursed an injured groundhog/rodent back to health...

Aberdeen, SD, fire claims pet squirrel

A small Thursday fire claimed an unusual victim. A pet squirrel belonging to an Aberdeen man died as the result of the accidental kitchen blaze. At 11:07AM, firefighters were called to an apartment at 214 N. Arch Street rented by Terry Kumpf. He was not hurt, fire officials said. However Kumpf's squirrel, a pet of nine years, could not be saved. The good news is his two canines survived. The squirrel was being kept in a cage and could not escape. When firefighters tried to retrieve the animal, it had inhaled too much smoke and died. Bob Winter, Shift Commander for Aberdeen Fire and Rescue, said the fire started as the result of a stove burner being unknowingly turned on, igniting plastic items on the stove. Flames damaged the stove and the nearby refrigerator. There was also smoke damage in the rest of the small apartment, he said. Lt. Tim Medenwald said Kumpf rescued his two dogs from the apartment. Fire department workers administered oxygen to the canines when they arrived. Medenwald said the dogs were lethargic, but doing fine. After a brief exam a short time later, the Aberdeen animal control office proclaimed the dogs in good health. No formal estimate of damage was available, but Winter said Kumpf lost some personal items.

Sir BLUE LeDoux, a distant relative of the apartment owner, added: "The story doesn't tell about how he tried to give the squirrel mouth to mouth for a half hour."

Source:
Aberdeen American News
By Scott Waltman, American News Writer
December 19, 2003