As smoke bellowed out of the house and firefighters made their last check of the building, one family member was still left inside.
Rodney, the 3-year-old guinea pig, sat in his cage with no hope of rescue until one Polk County firefighter noticed someone was missing.
"I sank to my knees and held Rodney while they treated him," Kristi Waller told Today.com, recreating the scene she encountered when she pulled up to her house on April 8. "My daughters were relieved he was all right. My neighbors brought over bedding and water for Rodney."
The fire broke out at their Mulberry-area home when Waller’s boyfriend dropped a pan in which he was cooking french fries,which then caught the kitchen on fire.
By the time Waller made it back to her home, she saw firefighters with Rodney and his cage.
"To have so much concern over something so small is extremely moving," Waller told The Ledger. "Just to see how much the firefighters actually cared for a little guinea pig was truly moving."
Rodney’s savior was Polk County firefighter John Williams, who entered the blaze and snatched the cage just in time.
"The smoke was thick when Williams, came upon the cage," Kevin Watler, a representative from Polk County Fire Rescue, said. "He did not hesitate. He grabbed the cage and took it outside into the fresh air, where rescue workers assessed that Rodney had inhaled a lot of smoke and gave him oxygen and water."
Waller has since taken to Facebook to thank Williams saying that they would "forever be thankful to you." The family has also set up a GoFundMe page to help with finding a new home since the fire completely destroyed theirs. Over $1,000 has been raised.
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