A homeless man risked his life to save cats and dogs from an animal shelter in Atlanta after the building caught fire.
“I was nervous as hell, I’m not going to lie,” 53-year-old Keith Walker shared after he rescued over a dozen pets from the W-Underdogs shelter on December 18 when a fire engulfed part of the building, according to CNN in a piece published Sunday.
“I was really scared to go in there with all that smoke,” Walker added. “But God put me there to save those animals. If you love a dog, you can love anyone in the world.” (RELATED: Watch This Herd Of Cows Help Police Take Down A Car Thief Suspect [VIDEO])
“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,” Walker continued. (RELATED: Watch: Great White Shark Surprises Australia Cops [VIDEO])
The shelter‘s founder, Gracie Hamlin, told the outlet she lets Walker keep his dog, a pitbull named Bravo, at the shelter every night. The homeless man was on his way to pick up his pet when he saw the fire.
“He is my guardian angel,” Hamlin shared with the outet. “Even the firefighters didn’t want to handle the dogs. They called animal control, but Keith was already in the building pulling out the cats and dogs until they were all safe.”
Walker was able to rescue all the pets, six dogs and 10 cats, before the fire burned down part of the facility.
“I can’t thank him enough for saving my animals,” Hamlin added. “I’m still in disbelief, because I’ve been around a fire and I know how fast they flare up. He is my hero.”