Parrot alerts owner to house fire in Australia

Nov. 4 (UPI) -- An Australian man is crediting his pet parrot with saving his life after the bird shouted out his name and alerted him to a house fire.

Anton Nguyen of Brisbane, Queensland, said he was asleep early Tuesday when he heard a noise followed by his parrot, Eric, calling out his name.

"I heard a bang and Eric -- my parrot -- he started to yell so I woke up and I smelled a bit of smoke," Nguyen told the Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Nguyen said the early warning from Eric allowed him to collect his pet and exit the house before the smoke detectors went off.

"I grabbed Eric, opened the door and looked to the back of the house and saw some flames," he said. "And so I've grabbed my bag and took off and bolted downstairs."

Firefighters said they were able to contain the blaze to Nguyen's home, but the house was fully engulfed in flames.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.