(Fox 13) – The Draper City Fire Department tragically lost a crew member in the Mendocino complex fire, but they also gained a new one with four legs.
Draper City Firefighter Patrick Cullen had been battling the Mendocino Complex Fire for about four days when he felt something move in the middle of the night.
“I thought, ‘oh, me and a mountain lion. This will be fun,’” said Cullen.
However, that mountain lion ended up being a German Shepherd.
“There was a mud puddle there that he was pawing at for water, so I gave him some water, a couple bottles of water, and he slept under the engine for the next few hours,” said Cullen.
Right away, Cullen and the other firefighters started brainstorming names.
“A couple of us had mentioned Mendo, and it stuck,” said Cullen.
As much as they loved having the dog around, it wasn’t safe to keep Mendo with them while they were on the fire lines.
The Mendocino Animal Shelter tried to find his owner and when nobody came forward, they contacted Cullen.
“A couple of the volunteers from the county offered to meet in Reno,” said Cullen.
Chandra Brouilette was one of those volunteers and she shot their reunion on her phone.
“It was so heartwarming, and Mendo recognized Patrick right away, and there was no doubt that this was truly, truly meant to be,” said Brouilette.
