Fire leaves Naugatuck home uninhabitable, displaces two

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By Andreas Yilma, Staff Writer

Firefighters from Naugatuck and surrounding departments work at the scene of a structure fire at 1251 Rubber Ave. in Naugatuck on Nov. 25. The house was deemed uninhabitable due to the extensive damage. -JIM SHANNON/REPUBLICAN-AMERICAN

NAUGATUCK — A house fire Wednesday afternoon displaced a borough couple from their home the day before Thanksgiving.

The fire caused significant damage to the single-family home at 1251 Rubber Ave. and left it uninhabitable, Deputy Fire Chief James Trzaski said. No one was hurt, he said.

Firefighters responded to the fire at 1:51 p.m. When they arrived five minutes later, Trzaski said the left side of the house was on fire. The flames were spreading to front porch and making their way into the home, he said.

At first, Trzaski said electricity short circuited in spots in the home and posed a danger to firefighters as they doused the flames. Eversource Energy responded to turn off the power.

“It was hampering fire conditions, so we had to have them shut the power down before we could make a more aggressive attack to put the fire out,” Trzaski said. “The power did hinder us from one area. However, we were able to isolate that area and do some work on the interior of the structure in a safe zone.”

Firefighters had the blaze under control at about 2:45 p.m. but continued to search for hot spots within the house.

Trzaski said two residents and their two dogs made it safely out of the house before firefighters arrived. The house sustained significant fire damage and is not livable, he said. The American Red Cross was called to help the residents.

The home is owned by Stacy and Stoney Brooks, according to borough land records.

A fire Nov. 25 left the home at 1251 Rubber Ave. in Naugatuck uninhabitable and displaced two residents. –ANDREAS YILMA

Beacon Falls, Middlebury, Oxford, Bethany, Seymour and Waterbury firefighters provided mutual aid and water tankers to help battle the blaze.

There are no fire hydrants on the road in the immediate area of the house. Firefighters filled tanker trucks at the closest hydrants, Trzaski said, one about a half a mile away on Rubber Avenue by the Southwood Gardens Apartments and another near the intersection of Neumann Street and Field Street.

Trzaski said firefighters had seven tankers available due to the fire’s potential to spread further, but only used four.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

“I’m very impressed by our members, by the quick attack on the fire,” he said. “Although there was considerable damage to the structure, they were able to make an aggressive interior attack and certainly stop the fire from spreading to the rest of the building,” Trzaski said.