TFD crews fend off pit bull

CENTRAL TOLEDO - A pit bull running loose in a Central Toledo yard delayed firefighters from entering a burning home Friday morning.

The call came in around 9:30 a.m. that a house was burning on Kimball Avenue, near Detroit Avenue in the central city.

When firefighters arrived on scene, they immediately called for the dog warden as they worked to corner the dog in the yard.

“Dogs are a hard thing to deal with for us, and we just do the best we can when we show up. It's a lot of improvising, adapting and overcoming,” Toledo fire Lt. Matt Hertzfeld said.

Friday morning, that improvising and adapting meant firefighters had to use tools to lead the dog away from the front door, and, eventually, they even had to spray the pit bull with a fire extinguisher to keep it from charging at emergency workers.

A Toledo police officer had his gun drawn as all this was going on.

“Once that dog starts attacking -- you know, somebody goes down, it could get them in the throat or something like that,” Lt. Hertzfeld said.

In the end, no one was injured, and Hertzfeld said the dog only kept firefighters at bay for a few minutes before they snuck in the front door. No one was inside.

Firefighters tell FOX Toledo News a woman who lives at the home said her dryer was smoking for an unknown reason, so she turned it off and left the home.

Smoke and flames spread around the basement and through the walls to other floors.

According to Toledo police, pit bulls are legally considered a vicious dog and, for that reason, must be kept locked up in a completely enclosed cage – even outdoors.

As of now, there’s no word on whether any charges or citations may be issued.