He Went to Pick Up His Dog. Then Keith Walker Saved 16 Animals From a Fire

On December 18, 2020, Keith Walker ran into a burning building to save the animals inside. The building was the W-Underdogs shelter in Atlanta, Georgia, a place he already knew because his own dog, Bravo, stayed there. He was on his way to collect Bravo when he saw the smoke. All sixteen animals made it out: ten cats and six dogs.

The Man Who Was Already Nearby

Keith Walker was 53 and homeless when he came across the fire at W-Underdogs in Atlanta. Instead of running away, he went into the building to help the animals. There were cats as well as dogs inside, and he managed to get them out safely. The shelter's founder, Gracie Hamlin, knew Walker already. His dog, Bravo, stayed at the shelter overnight. So this wasn't somewhere he had to stop and work out what was behind the door. He knew there were animals in there, including his own.

A Familiar Face at the Shelter

Victoria Stilwell, the dog trainer and W-Underdogs advisory board member, shed some light on Keith's story after the fire. Keith had been homeless since he was only 13 years old. He was 53 when the shelter burned, which is a long time to have gone without a permanent place to live. Yet there he is in the photographs with Bravo, holding him close. The dog had someone who cared about him. And, thanks to the arrangement with W-Underdogs, he had somewhere to sleep at night.

Bravo Had Somewhere to Sleep

Victoria and the team at W-Underdogs were well acquainted with Keith. They let him keep Bravo, his pit bull, at the shelter overnight. That meant he didn't have to find somewhere for the dog to sleep as well as looking after himself. Stilwell described Bravo this way: ‘Bravo is full of energy and has a very loving personality. He is very much loved.’ Looking at the pictures of Keith with his arm around the dog, that's not hard to believe. The two were already part of the shelter's life.

Smoke Where He Expected His Dog

Keith was on his way to get Bravo when he noticed something was wrong. As he approached the shelter, he saw smoke. He later admitted to CNN that he had been nervous about going inside. It's easy to call someone fearless afterward, but he didn't claim that about himself. His dog was in there, along with the shelter's other animals. Keith went into the building anyway. The picture of Bravo here is a much happier sight than what Keith must have feared he would find that afternoon.

There Were Other Animals Inside

Keith wasn't content to rescue Bravo and leave the other animals behind. There were more dogs in the shelter, and cats too, all needing to get out of the building. He helped rescue the whole group. It's one thing to say there were sixteen animals inside; it's another to picture getting all of them to safety while there's smoke around you. The dogs in this photograph are piled together on a couch. A much better place to be than the building shown later in the gallery.

What Walker Said Afterward

Keith was scared to enter the smoke-filled shelter. He said so himself. In his interview with CNN, he explained: ‘God put me there to save those animals. If you love a dog, you can love anyone in the world. My dog is my best friend and I wouldn't be here without him, so I knew I had to save all those other dogs.’ Bravo had helped Keith through his own troubles. Now Keith had been able to help Bravo, and the other animals in the shelter as well.

Six Dogs and Ten Cats

Keith rescued every one of the sixteen animals inside: ten cats and six dogs, including his own Bravo. Gracie Hamlin, the founder of W-Underdogs, shared his story on Instagram and in interviews. There were no animals left in the building. Just look at the size of the fire engine outside compared with the blue shelter van. The next photographs show what happened to the kitchen. It's hard to look at that room and not feel relieved that the animals were already out of it.

Help Arrived at the Building

Firefighters and animal services were involved in the response, and W-Underdogs thanked them along with Walker. Hamlin's account placed Walker inside helping the animals while arrangements were being made for animal control. That doesn't make the emergency crews the villains of the story. Walker's help and the professional response were both part of what happened that day. The shelter's kitchen was badly damaged, as you can see in the darkened room pictured here. Getting everyone out came before the task of working out what could be saved.

Gracie Hamlin's Relief

Gracie was overwhelmed with gratitude for Keith's help. She told CNN, ‘I can't thank him enough for rescuing my animals. I'm still in shock because I know how quickly fires can spread. He is my hero.’ She had been worried about the animals in the building, and now they were out. The photograph shows a dog by an open vehicle with someone beside it. There would still be plenty to do, but at least Gracie and the volunteers could get on with looking after living animals.

The Animals Were Safe. The Building Wasn't Usable

After the fire, the old shelter couldn't be used. Fortunately, the animals were safe, but there was no carrying on in a building that looked like this. The kitchen ceiling is black, the walls are marked, and you can still see things sitting on the counters. Gracie had lost the use of the place even though the animals had survived. There was one bit of good timing, if you can call anything about a fire good: W-Underdogs was already preparing to move to a different location.

A Move Was Already Planned

The W-Underdogs staff had been planning for a big move to their new location in a week's time. But the fire brought an unexpected end to their stay in the old building. Thankfully, the animals had a new home to move into. There was still a lot to do to get them settled, of course. Moving a shelter is enough work without a fire in the middle of it. The dog in this photograph is sitting in a car, with bags and supplies all around.

People Came Forward to Help

Gracie and the rest of the shelter staff were overwhelmed by the support from their community. As news spread about the fire and Keith's rescue of the animals, people offered help. There were volunteers to call on and friends who knew the organization long before this story reached the news.

W-Underdogs thanked them afterward: ‘We just wanted to say THANK YOU to all our friends and volunteers for coming to our immediate aid.’ The animals were safe, but the team still needed help getting them settled. This was a good time to have people willing to turn up.

The Children Behind W-Underdogs

At W-Underdogs, young people are given a chance to learn about animals and help give them a home. According to Gracie Hamlin, the relationship between the children and the animals they help rescue and rehome is particularly special. The program gives children responsibilities, and the chance to feel good about something they've done for an animal. There's a small dog in the middle of this group of volunteers, looking quite at home. These are the sorts of pictures the shelter would much rather be sharing than photographs of a fire.

Supplies, Donations and a Fresh Start

After hearing about Keith rescuing the animals, people wanted to help him and the shelter. Volunteers worked to get W-Underdogs settled in its new facility, and donations came in for both the organization and Keith himself. Not only had the volunteers been helping with the move, but the shelter was also continuing its connection with Keith and Bravo. That arrangement hadn't ended with the fire. There were still cats and dogs to feed, too, as the collection of pet supplies in this photograph reminds us.

Support for Walker and Bravo

When Bravo was trapped in a fire, Keith was there to help save him. Now it was W-Underdogs' turn to lend a helping hand. Hamlin said donations had been coming in to help Keith, with an organization that worked with homeless people helping to manage them. The staff at W-Underdogs were also committed to looking after both Keith and Bravo when needed. That's the part you hope for after a story like this. A thank-you is lovely, but Keith and his dog still needed somewhere to turn.

Life After the Fire

The animals Keith had saved from the kitchen fire at the original shelter began finding foster and permanent homes, according to the updates that followed. That's what the shelter had wanted for them all along. Despite the damage to the building, the incident had brought an outpouring of support from the community. More people knew about the cats and dogs, and more people wanted to help. After looking at the burned kitchen earlier in the gallery, it's a relief to get back to pictures of animals being held and cared for.

Familiar Faces and New Homes

The animals were getting plenty of attention after the fire. Hamlin spoke about that in her interview with CNN, and the shelter's pictures show dogs being held and fussed over by people. Not every photograph was taken during the rescue; some show the shelter's other work. This one, for instance, has a person crouched down next to a rather large brown dog. The person is smiling at the camera, while the dog seems to have spotted something more interesting off to the side. Getting everyone to look the same way isn't easy.

The Response to Walker's Story

Keith received a lot of appreciation after the rescue. One commenter quoted in the original account, John McGuinness, wrote: ‘Fantastic man who put his life at risk for the sake of animals. You deserve a home for life in my book. Well done, my friend.’ Other people also asked what could be done to help him. In the photograph, Keith stands beside a W-Underdogs vehicle. He'd become the face of a story that reached far beyond Atlanta, all because he'd gone to pick up his dog.

Looking Beyond the Headline

Helen Byrnes was another person whose response appeared in the original account. She wrote, ‘He cared for the animals more than people cared about him. Maybe now they will see he is a human with a run of bad luck. I think he deserves some help.’ She wanted people to help Keith with the things he needed himself. A place to sleep, food, perhaps a job.

An Award With His Name on It

Keith's rescue at the W-Underdogs shelter was recognized by the New York State Humane Association, which presented him with its Hero Award. You can see the plaque in this photograph. It reads, ‘For his courageous and fearless actions at the W-Underdogs animal shelter to save all the dogs and cats from a horrific fate.’ The date of the fire is on it too: December 18, 2020. Keith had gone to collect Bravo that day. He ended up helping save every animal in the building.