A woman who set out to make a steak dinner for her three Jack Russells almost ended up with hot dogs instead after the fire service had to be called in.
Pampered pooches Chip, Gizmo and Jess’s meals went up in smoke when their owner, Kathleen Howard, left he pan on while she “slipped out for 20 minutes”.
he stunned mum-of-four said she popped out “to help my daughter-in-law move some odds and ends”.
Miss Howard, of Blackpool, Lancs., said: “I completely forgot I had left the pan on a low heat.
“I said to her, ‘oh hell, two fire engines have just gone past’. Then I thought, oh my goodness, my dogs.
“My stomach was in my throat and I wanted to be sick.”
Fire crews were called to the 63-year-old’s home at around 9.25pm on Tuesday after next-door neighbour Sharon Burns, 47, reported hearing a fire alarm.
She said: “I went round and knocked on the door and I heard the dogs barking.
“I had visions of them all being unconscious on the floor.”
Fearing the worst, retired business manager Miss Howard rushed home, where she was reunited with her beloved pets, who had been saved from the smoke-filled property by firefighters.
She said: “They dived on me, all three of them. I was crying with relief.
“Now they’ve been fed and watered and all three of them are sleeping on my bed.
“The fire was all smoke from the pan. There wasn’t any damage, just the smell of smoke and dust. I’ve just got to clean up now.”
