Oak Island man rescues dog from burning home

OAK ISLAND, NC (WWAY) — Just after 2 p.m. on Saturday, the Oak Island Fire Department said they got a call at a house on NE 54th St. About that time, Mckell Cook arrives after he saw smoke in the distance.  

Cook said that the homeowner jumped out of the burning house from the 2nd floor balcony. He is now recovering from his injuries. 

The fire also damaged the two adjacent homes, including one with three dogs inside. The dogs were trapped until an unknown good samaritan opened the door to release two of the dogs; but with one still left inside, Cook took it a step further.   

Cook rushed into the burning home and saved the last dog, a border collie named Spike.  

“I pick him up, the dog’s just scared of me, he just curls up in my arms, he pees on me a little bit,” he said. “But then I just run out the house and then I let him down and I’m just coughing from the smoke and all that.”  

Cook said he knew immediately it was the right decision.  

 “I was thinking, I got God on my side, the whole other side of the house isn’t even on fire yet, I can get in and out of there in under a minute safely, so I just did it,” he recalled. 

Spike’s owners, who did not want to go on camera, said they offered money to Cook for saving their dog, but he respectfully declined.   

“I just wanted to help out. I didn’t want to be that guy that’s like ‘heck yeah, give me that money.'” 

Both the homeowners and Cook said they never got the identity of the man who first opened the door.

The Oak Island Fire Department said the cause of the fire is still under investigation, though no foul play is suspected at this time.