Kennel owner assesses fire’s aftermath

May 17--Lynaire Kennels is slowly picking up the pieces after an electrical fire that took the lives of 27 dogs on May 9 as workers and pet owners still deal with grief at the loss of the pets.

According to a spokeswoman with Lynaire Kennels, a manager who did not want her name used, owner Linda Baake Jarvis has been told by insurance companies that the 4 a.m. fire was caused by wiring somewhere in the attic or crawlspace over the main kennel. Twenty-seven dogs died in the blaze.

Another 20 pets, however -- cats and dogs -- were rescued from a second adjoining building by rescue personnel who first arrived at the blaze.

Lynaire staff arrived on the scene shortly after the fire departments arrived to fight the fire. "Once the staff was on site, we went around to where we could get in" and worked to save some animals, she said. The main building, fully engulfed in flames, could not be entered.

She said that the State Bureau of Investigation told Jarvis that, based on investigation of the dead animals, most likely died of carbon monoxide inhalation poisoning and were spared death from the flames.

"I have a very different level of respect for the firemen," the spokeswoman said, noting that the firemen were preparing to go in after the fire to retrieve the lost pets. "We wouldn't let them," she said. "The staff retrieved them because we knew where each one was."

In that manner, they were able to make sure they identified each pet for its owners.

Retrieving those pets was one of the hardest things she's ever had to do, she said.

"It was very devastating," she said. "Very hard. I have no words for it."

It was difficult at first notifying the owners of the disaster.

The computer was in the main building and was destroyed in the blaze, she said. She said the system was always backed up on a flash drive that was placed in a fireproof safe at night. Although still usable, the flash drive was soaked and had to be stored in rice until it dried and could be accessed, she said.

The spokeswoman said some Facebook posts have accused the kennel of not communicating with owners, but she noted that Jarvis has spoken with all the pet owners -- both those who lost pets and those whose pets survived -- except for one.

The one owner, whose dog was killed, is a Havelock resident who is out of the area. The only number the kennel has for him does not reach him, she said. The kennel tried to track him through his veterinarian, but the vet has the same number the kennel has.

- "Linda has personally made a call to each of the clients who lost fur babies," she said. She said the owners can collect their pets' remains, but the kennel is also cremating those lost pets whose owners wish to receive their cremated remains.

Insurance also will compensate owners for lost pets, she said.

"It really bothers me that there are some things put on Facebook saying there's poor communication," she said. "We have mourned as much as anyone.

"Once the dogs walk into our kennels, they are ours, and that's how we treat them," she said. "The people that have been dealing with us for years know how we are."

She said the majority of posts and responses have been positive and supportive. Some people are angry, she said, but added she realizes they are working through a grieving process.

The spokeswoman said the kennel did not have a sprinkler system, which was not required by the state. But because of the source of the fire, a sprinkler system would have made things worse for the pets rather than saving them, she said.

"The sprinkler system would have failed" since the fire started in the attic, she said. The sprinkler's pipes would have been super heated, she said, "and would have come out as steam heat, like pouring boiling water on your dog."

She said a private memorial service is being planned for the lost pets, but will not be held until the fire site is cleaned up. A memorial garden is also planned.

Currently a makeshift memorial has been set up, including a banner placed by Troop 97 stating "All Dogs Go to Heaven: Our thoughts and prayers are with you."

Several wreaths, bouquets and a cross are also on site. The cross contains 27 paw prints superimposed over a heart, one for each dog lost. Plastic-sealed photos of two of the dogs lost in the fire, named Titus and Tank, are also laid at the site.

The smaller building can be repaired, she said, and will be in working order in six to eight weeks, she estimated. The larger building, which was destroyed, is expected to be replaced within a year.

In the meantime, pet owners are being advised to use Jill's Pet Resort on Old Airport Road.

Employees of the kennels are being paid through insurance, "but we want to be working again," the spokeswoman said. "We show up every day to do what ever we can."

Contact Bill Hand at [email protected] , 252-635-5677, and follow him on Twitter @BillHandNBSJ.

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