Firefighters Free Trapped Poodle From Underneath Shed

Dog may be man’s best friend. But on Tuesday morning in Woburn, a group of firefighters were a trapped poodle’s No. 1 companion.

Woburn Fire Lt. Bill Stukey said he received a call just after 10 a.m. on Tuesday where a black poodle had gotten away from its dog walker and become trapped under a shed.

“When we got there, we really couldn’t see anything,” said Stukey. “We moved the sideboard off and could see a little bit of black way in the back. We don’t know how the heck he got under there. He must have dug his way under the shed.”

Firefighters pulled up the plywood floor inside the shed, but still couldn’t reach Sirius, who wasn’t moving underneath the shed.

“At first, we were worried he might be dead,” said Stukey.

But the news soon took a turn for the better, and thanks to a bit of creativity by the Fire Department, Sirius was freed.

Stukey called Engine 3 to the scene, equipped with the Jaws of Life. Using the heavy-duty equipment, firefighters were able to lift the shed off of the ground. Soon after, the dusty dog came bounding out of its hiding place.

The Woburn lieutenant praised the efforts of fellow firefighter Phil Gray, dog officer Jay Donovan, and several other veteran officers for the rescue. Stukey said no one on scene had ever seen a similar situation where a hydraulic lift was used to lift a structure.

“We are trained to adapt to whatever the situation is,” said Stukey. “We were all pretty happy with how it worked out.”