Home destroyed, family pet killed in DeKalb County house fire

SNELLVILLE, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Fire crews battled a massive fire at a house in DeKalb County Tuesday morning.

It happened around 5:45 a.m. on Norris Lake Road in Snellville. Captain Jaeson Daniels with DeKalb County Fire Rescue said when his crews arrived, the home was engulfed in flames.

One person lived in the home, and they were already outside when the fire happened, Daniels said. The resident told firefighters that his dog was still inside the home, and officials later confirmed that the dog died in the fire.

WANF’s First Alert Chopper flew over the scene, showing heavy smoke for miles. Crews are still working to put out hotspots.

“Oftentimes when you have a fire of this magnitude, when you have a total loss, what happens is the roof actually falls down, and it makes it difficult to get down to the seat of the fire,” Captain Daniels said. “If you could imagine, just how a roof protects a house from rain, it’s the same thing that it’s doing when it’s burned down. It’s still protecting the home. So, we oftentimes have to get in there with the rakes and pull that stuff back.”

A few cars and an RV were also destroyed, according to Daniels.

While the cause of the fire and where it started is still being investigated, Daniels is sending an important reminder to all.

“We always say make sure that you have working smoke detectors, smoke alarms inside your home. That is the No. 1 lifesaver,” he said.