Neighbors Rescue Pets From Killingly House Fire



by Quiet Corner Alerts on 10-30-2022

Updated at 12:35 pm October 30th 2022

Killingly, Conn - At approximately 7 pm on Saturday, October 29th, the Attawaugan Fire Department, and mutual aid companies were dispatched for reports of flames coming from the roof of a dwelling at 100 Thompson Pike.

Donald Jones, who lives nearby said he was outside working on his own home when he saw the whole roof of 100 Thompson Pike "glowing orange". He immediately reported the fire through 911 and ran across the road along with another neighbor. Together they forced their way through the front door knowing that the occupants, who had departed earlier in the day, had dogs trapped inside. They were able to safely remove the dogs prior to the fire department arriving on the scene.

The first unit to arrive on the scene was a KB Ambulance which reported heavy flames visible through the roof. As additional units arrived on the scene it became apparent that manpower and hose lines would not be the issue in fighting this fire, the difficulty would be getting water to the scene. While this portion of Killingly is hydranted, the hydrants in the Westview Commons provide significantly lower water pressure in comparison to other parts of town due to the lack of a booster pump. In order to supplement these hydrants, multiple additional tankers were requested to the scene to support water shuttle operations.

According to Attawaugan Fire Chief Matt Desrosiers, crews initially stretched a hose line into the building to assist in the search for possible occupants. Neighbors were able to make phone contact with the occupants and confirm that nobody was within the structure. With that knowledge, Chief Desrosiers made the decision to pull crews out of the building and perform exterior operations only due to the amount of fire showing from the roof. Multiple hoses were set up outside the structure as well as an aerial ladder, with a high-flow nozzle, to attack the flames from the exterior.

Chief Desrosiers's judgment to not allow firefighters into the structure proved to be vital as the walls on the back and left side of the structure both partially collapsed a short time later. Nobody was injured in either collapse.

During the incident, Chief Desrosiers said he had to put on multiple hats. Being a volunteer department there is no guarantee that firefighters will be able to respond, knowing this, he had to fill both the role of the pump operator on the first due engine and the incident commander. Throughout the incident, he could be seen with multiple portable radios while manning the pump panel from the driveway. Chief Desrosiers went on to discuss the struggles that volunteer departments face trying to keep the membership levels high enough to effectively respond to calls.

The fire was officially kept at the 1st alarm level with the addition of numerous other tankers.

The Red Cross is assisting the five displaced residents along with their pets.

The Connecticut State Fire Marshall, along with the arson task force, is investigating the fire. It appears the Arson Task Force was primarily requested for additional resources.

Agencies that responded included the Attawaugan Fire Department, Putnam Fire Department, Williamsville Fire Department, East Killingly Fire Department, South Killingly, East Brooklyn, East Putnam Fire Department, Dayville Fire Department, Danielson Fire Department, Mortlake Fire Department, Central Village Fire Department, Moosup Fire Department, Community Fire Company, East Thompson Fire Department, West Thompson Fire Department, Woodstock Fire Department, Muddy Brook Fire Department, Bungay Fire Brigade, KB Ambulance, Connecticut State Police, and the Connecticut State Fire Marshall.

Photos from this incident can be found at Quiet Corner Alerts SmugMug

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