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Meet Bella, the Gold-Chain-Wearing Yorkie Who Rides With the FDNY

By Noah Hurowitz | August 25, 2016 2:53pm
 Bella, a six-year-old teacup Yorkshire terrier and seasoned firefighter, stole the show on Thursday afternoon when she and her comrades at FDNY Engine 8/Ladder 2 responded to burning car in a Midtown garage.
Bella the Firefighter
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She's the hero New York needs.

Bella, a 6-year-old teacup Yorkshire terrier, stole the show on Thursday afternoon when she and her comrades at FDNY Engine 8/Ladder 2/Battalion 8 responded to a burning car in a Midtown garage.

Bella has been hanging around Engine 8, located on East 51st Street between Third and Lexington avenues, for most of her life, putting in 24-hour shifts just like the rest of New York’s Bravest, according to one of her colleagues, who declined to give his name.

“She likes to ride around in the truck,” he said.

Bella drew an admiring crowd as employees waited to head back into the Sheraton Times Square Hotel, part of which was evacuated just before noon Thursday after a car caught fire in the adjoining garage, an FDNY spokesman said.

But don't be fooled by her size. Sporting a gold chain, the pyro pooch showed her tough side when one fan got a little too close to her perch in the truck, sending the woman packing with a ferocious bark.

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While Bella guarded her truck, firefighters brought the blaze — located three levels below ground in the hotel’s garage — under control by 1 p.m., according to an FDNY spokesman.

One person suffered minor injuries due to smoke inhalation.