An elderly widower died Saturday in a Michigan house fire trying to save his trapped pooch — who was “his world” — after initially fleeing the deadly flames moments earlier.
John Balkevitch, 81, and his dog both perished inside the burning house around 11 a.m. after neighbors attempting their own heroic rescue couldn’t get past the fierce flames, witnesses said.
A thunderous explosion shook the Roseville neighborhood and flames quickly engulfed the house.
Ohio pastor dies trying to save two sons in early morning house fire: ‘They all perished’
“I just heard some screaming coming down from my street,” neighbor Jeremy Skobler told WXYZ.
Skobler told the station that Balkevitch originally got out of the house safely, but couldn’t leave behind his 5-year-old rescue dog, Lexie.
Two kids home from school due to frigid Missouri weather killed when house explodes
“He went in for his dog,” the fire victim’s daughter, Stacie Krause, told WXYZ. “That dog was his world. He loved her so much.”