Cats rescued…

Van Wert Fire Department Lt. Zach Merkle rescues two cats from heavy smoke caused by a fire inside a home in the 900 block of McKinley St. on Saturday. The fire department was summoned to the scene just before 6 p.m. According to Lt. Nick Steyer, the blaze began in the crawl space. It was brought under control in about 40 minutes and the fire department was on the scene for over 90 minutes. No injuries were reported. Bob Barnes/VWFD photographer