Pit bull saves Ore. family from house fire

CANYONVILLE, Ore. - As Teresa Holt and her children slept, an electrical fire silently smoldered in her closet.

Before the flames erupted and destroyed their home and possessions, the family's pit bull mix, Grizzly, woke up Holt's son, Justin.

"The dog trampled over me and stuff," Justin Holt said. "It was acting weird and I was like, 'What's wrong?' And then I thought I smelled something on fire, and I thought it was the stove at first.

"Then I realized when I rolled back over it was coming out of my mom's (closet) into my closet."

The small house quickly went up in flames and everything was a total loss. (View photo gallery)

"I still don't know how we got out because the house was so full of smoke, and I'm surprised it wasn't further inflamed before we woke up," Teresa Holt said.

The woman credits Grizzly with saving the family's life.

It's the second time in her life Teresa Holt has had to flee a house fire. Her parent's house burned to the ground when she was 16.

"It was pretty scary then," she said, "and it was really scary this time."

The community and the Red Cross have assisted the family. People can also make donations at any Umpqua Bank branch for Teresa Holt.