Three CT Firefighters Hurt Battling Fatal Blaze
By David Owens and Don Stacom
Source The Hartford Courant
New Britain High School brought in grief counselors Monday morning after a 17-year-old student was killed along with his older brother in an Elam Street house fire late Sunday afternoon.
Authorities have not released the names of the two victims, but the school system confirmed that the 17-year-old had attended classes at the high school.
The city fire marshal’s office is trying to determine what started the fire the tore through 73 Elam St. Three firefighters were injured battling the blaze.
The fire was reported at about 4:40 p.m. and the first firefighters to arrive found the house in flames.
Three people were home when the fire broke out and one was able to escape. The two young men who died became trapped, New Britain Fire Chief Raul Ortiz said.
Commanders called a second alarm and sent in firefighters, but had to pull crews back out a few minutes later.
“When firefighters arrived on scene, they reported heavy fire, front to back, floor to ceiling," Ortiz said. "They also got reports of two people trapped in the building. They made an interior aggressive attack for as long as they could."
There was just too much fire for the firefighters to keep searching, Ortiz said.
“It got to the point where conditions were getting worse on the second floor,” Ortiz said. "Smoke was very turbulent, it was ready to go. The situation was very bad."
The order was given for firefighters to get out of the house. They continued battling the fire from outside.
One firefighter fell from the roof and two suffered burns, Ortiz said. They are expected to be OK.
“The worst part of this situation is that ... two people have died,” Ortiz said.
The house that burned is a Cape Cod-style home in a neighborhood of similar homes in New Britain’s west end.
Relatives of those affected by the fire went to the scene. The family is being assisted by the Red Cross and relatives, Ortiz said.
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