FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – A family is safe but in need of a new place to stay after a fire that sparked at their Fort Lauderdale home claimed the life of one of their pets.<\/p>\n
The four teens who live at the home, a brother and three sisters, were setting up a gaming chair with some friends on Friday morning when, they said, the chair got really hot, started to smoke and then set the room on fire.<\/p>\n
When the fire broke out, the teens tried to get their pets out and called 911.<\/p>\n
In video provided by Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue, firefighters could be seen resuscitating one of the family\u2019s pets, a land tortoise named Franklin.<\/p>\n
There were also three cats inside the home, and all but one made it out. The family said one of their felines, named Cheesecake, died in the fire.<\/p>\n
Everyone else inside the home was able to make it out OK.<\/p>\n
FLFR officials said the teens all did the right thing by getting out quickly and calling 911.<\/p>\n
The teens said they initially thought about attempting to put the fire out themselves, but they knew that\u2019s not what they should do and got out of the home.<\/p>\n
The family was able to save some items from inside, but the interior of the home was heavily damaged.<\/p>\n
The mother of the teens works at a veterinarian\u2019s hospital and was at work when all of this happened.<\/p>\n
She said she\u2019s just thankful that her kids are OK and that most of their pets are OK, adding they just have to figure out where to go from here.<\/p>\n
Copyright 2026 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.<\/p>\n
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