GEORGETOWN, Texas — More than a dozen families have settled a lawsuit against a Georgetown pet kennel where 75 dogs died in a fire in September 2021.
A $75,000 settlement was reached with 13 families as compensation for the loss of their pets in the fire, which occurred after an electrical malfunction at the facility.
Also as part of the settlement, the facility's owner Philip Paris issued a written apology to the pet owners which acknowledged that the facility fell short of proper fire safety mechanisms. The apology, as well as a memorial for the dogs, can be found here.
In the aftermath of the incident, it was discovered that the facility had no sprinklers or smoke alarms equipped, nor were any staff present the night the fire occurred. It was also discovered that facility wasn't even licensed by the city of Georgetown to serve as a kennel.
The nature of what caused the electrical malfunction is not known, although the city of Georgetown narrowed it to a number of different possibilities, including:
- One of two blower motors failed and melted plastic around them to its ignition point
- An air purifier failed and melted the plastic to its ignition point
- A rodent deterrent ignited in a wall plug and caught the surrounding material on fire
- An extension cord failed and melted through sheathing, causing the surrounding material catch fire
- An insect killer created an environment that sustained a flame and melted, catching the area around it on fire
- General failure of the building's electrical system
Immediately following the fire, Georgetown Fire Chief John Sullivan said smoke and flames built inside the building for at least 12 minutes before the fire department was notified.
“We know the animals were alive up until that point,” Sullivan said on Oct. 1, 2021.
Sullivan said they could have likely saved some of the lives if they knew sooner.
Since the fire, the city of Georgetown has changed its fire code, mandating sprinklers be present at 24-hour pet facilities.
The fire also prompted the passage of House Bill 2063, which was authored by State Rep. James Talarico (D-Round Rock) and signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott. It requires kennels to give pet owners a written notice if their animal will be left unattended during specific hours or if the facility doesn't have a functioning sprinkler system. If a pet is injured or dies while unattended and the facility didn't give written notice, it would be a Class B misdemeanor.