1936: The Cat-Saving Fire Dog Hero of Brooklyn’ s Engine Company No. 203

In 1936, Chief (or Nip), the veteran fire dog of Brooklyn’s Engine Company No. 203, won four medals of honor for heroism from the following agencies:

• New York Women’s League for Animals
• Dog’s World International
• American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
• New York Anti-Vivisection Society

https://i.imgur.com/wO3uk77.png

During his years of service with the engine company, Chief/Nip had demonstrated many acts of bravery and heroism. He rode with the company to every fire, and was always the first to leap off the fire engine and run into the burning buildings to scout for victims. Whenever he found a human in need of help, the brave fire dog would bark until the firemen responded.

I’m sure the fireman rewarded him with extra food or treats every time he saved someone, but Chief/Nip was never rewarded with medals for saving a human mother or child. He was awarded the medals for saving a cat. (And he didn’t even like cats.)

On November 10, 1936, a fire broke out in the basement of a four-story brick apartment building at 308 Hicks Street in Brooklyn Heights. It quickly spread to the upper floors through a dumb-waiter shaft.

https://i.imgur.com/RC4zGuO.jpg

Ten people were in the building when Adela Gomez, 17, ran into the hallway on the second floor and screamed after smelling smoke. John Bermudez, 16, was with his mother, his 18-year-old sister Anna, his 12-year-old brother Joseph, and his sister-in-law and her baby in their top-floor apartment when they heard the commotion.

As the family started to descend the stairs, John noticed a cat running in the opposite direction toward the top floor. (Some reports say the cat was named Carlotta and belonged to John; other reports say the cat was named Fluffy and belonged to Mrs. Andrea Gomez on the second floor). John was determined to run after the cat and save it. John’s mother protested, but the “invincible” teenager darted upstairs as his family made their way safely to the street.

When the firemen of Engine Company No. 203 arrived on the scene, they found John unconscious on the stairway between the third and fourth floors. They took him to the street, where a rescue squad tried to revive him for nearly an hour without success (I’m not sure why they didn’t transport him to a hospital).

https://i.imgur.com/P0RSLnd.jpg

Soon after the firemen brought John out of the building, Chief/Nip emerged from the building, a little bit singed, with the cat in his jaws. The cat had lost a few of its nine lives, but somehow it was revived.

The rescue at 308 Hicks Street wasn’t the first time the company’s fire dog had saved a cat. Only a few months before, he had put his disdain for felines aside to do his duty and rescue a litter of five kittens from a burning store at Hicks and Union Streets.

Chief/Nip’s Life as a Fire Dog

Taken in as a stray one winter night in 1929, Chief/Nip served 10 years with Engine Company No. 203. During that time, he received numerous injuries from broken glass and falling debris, burns from scalding water, and bruises from falling off the fire engine. He also had some wonderful times, especially during the summer months when he got to live with one of the firemen in his home on Long Island.

https://i.imgur.com/jbpNVPu.png

Chief/Nip could recognize all the bells and signals, and he knew exactly which signal meant his company was responding to a call (he never made a mistake). On the fire scenes, Chief/Nip would superintend the firefighters and alert them if he knew something was wrong. If the hoses ever splashed his way, Chief/Nip would nestle under a fireman’s coat.

Chief/Nip Answers His Last Call

Although Chief/Nip was a 16-year-old senior citizen in 1939, he probably had a few more good years left as an active fire dog when his life was abruptly ended on November 9, 1939. While playing out in front of the firehouse, Chief/Nip was struck by a hit-and-run driver.

People in the street called out for help, and a group of children followed the fire dog into the firehouse and told Lt. Matthew F. Rogers that it had been hit by a car that kept going. Instead of waiting for help to come, Chief/Nip dragged himself back inside and tried to jump up on the fire engine seat. Missing the seat, he landed on the running board, where he curled up and died.

https://i.imgur.com/EowwCMc.jpg

The members of Engine Company No. 203 kept him in a place of honor at the firehouse until the company disbanded in 1974.

A Brief History of the Brooklyn Fire Department and Engine Company No. 203 @ link:

https://hatchingcatnyc.com/2017/10/28/fire-dog-brooklyn-engine-203/