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Firefighter loses own home in Sunday blaze but grateful for dog

The community is rallying around a South Bend firefighter whose own home caught fire on Sunday.

Around 6:30 a.m., Colin Kowalski was sleeping at Station 10 when his phone went off. He initially snoozed it, thinking it was his alarm to wake up for shift change, but it quickly rang again.

It was his wife Abbi calling to say their home in Plymouth was on fire.

"When she finally got a hold of me, she said the kids are out, the dogs are out, but our house is on fire. You need to come home like right now," Kowalski said.

The 33-year-old firefighter said the house was a total loss and he was shocked to learn that their homeowners insurance had lapsed for nonpayment without his knowledge. Firefighters have started a fund that’s accepting donations and a friend has started a GoFundMe.

Kowalski said he’s fortunate that his parents in Granger are taking the family in until they can find housing. He’s also grateful for their German Shepherd, Riot, who started barking and woke Abbi, 6-year-old son Orin and 4-year-old daughter Rayla, before smoke detectors sounded even.

"He fits the name, he is a real terror most of the time but you know what? I'm pretty thankful for him right now."

Kowalski said he bought Riot a steak to show his gratitude.

Parrott, a longtime public radio fan, comes to WVPE with about 25 years of journalism experience at newspapers in Indiana and Michigan, including 13 years at The South Bend Tribune. He and Kristi have two children currently attending Indiana University in Bloomington. In his free time he enjoys fixing up their home, following his favorite college and professional sports teams, and watching TV (yes that's an acceptable hobby).