David Owens
The Hartford Courant
Two brothers perished in a house fire on Elam Street Sunday afternoon and three firefighters were injured battling the blaze, city officials said.
The fire at 73 Elam St. was reported at about 4:40 p.m. and the first firefighters to arrive found the house heavily involved in fire.
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.
The New Britain and state fire marshal are investigating the fire’s cause.
“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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