Once again, a working smoke alarm saves the day.
A Thorold couple was fast asleep when the alarm began to blare around 12:20 a.m. Monday morning.
The St. Catharines Standard reports the homeowner jumped out of bed, running downstairs to find the source of the fire.
Once they discovered smoke and fire in the basement, they closed the basement door, grabbing the family dogs and making a quick escape.
Crews were on scene at Chapel St. N. for about three hours as they battled the blaze.
There is no word on damage at this point, but Thorold's Fire Chief Brian Dickson tells the paper the basement was heavily damaged.