Neighbor’s barking dog alerts owner of fire next door

At 1:09 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 11, a neighbor called the Lovell Police Department to report a vehicle on fire on Carmon Avenue.

Bruce Wacker had been awakened by his dog Ollie barking in the backyard and went to check on the situation. When he went outside, he noticed the flames and made the call and went to attempt to alert the homeowner of the emergency.

Local fire department, ambulance and police officers responded rapidly to the location and were directed by the neighbor to the car parked in the alley in front of a garage that was on fire.

When Lovell fire chief Mike Jameson arrived on scene, he was able to extinguish the majority of the fire on the vehicle as the first fire truck was pulling into the alley. Because it was still burning a little, the fire department opened the hood and realized that the car had just burned on one end.

There were also spots burning on the ground around the vehicle, and because of the darkness the damage to the garage wasn’t noticed until adequate lighting was shown on the scene, Jameson said.

Determining whether the fire originated at the garage, at the car or on the ground and how it started was enough of an issue for the police and fire department to call in state fire marshals from Riverton to investigate.

Since officers were able to speak with the resident of the property, Mikeal Martinelli, after the fire was cleared, Chief Jameson remained at the location until the marshals arrived around 6 a.m.

The fire marshals brought a dog that is trained in recognizing accelerants at fire scenes, and the animal detected traces of one at the location.

As an initial investigation began, an officer asked neighbors about surveillance cameras that could have possibly recorded events that had taken place in that area.

Upon examining the time stamped video footage from one camera, there was enough evidence to place Martinelli’s ex-partner, Heather Cozzens, 38, of Lovell under arrest, whereupon she was taken to jail and charged with first degree arson with intent to destroy.

Further evidence is being collected, and the situation is still currently under investigation.

 “If that dog hadn’t barked and woke up the neighbor to see that fire, it could have burned for a long time before anyone saw it,” Jameson said. “If it had even been 30 minutes later, the whole garage would have been on fire, for sure.”