NORWICH, CT — Norwich Mayor Peter Nystrom was out putting up lawn signs for a local Christmas festival on Sunday when he noticed a peculiar line of smoke running along the roof-line of an Otrobando Avenue residence.
"Everything about it looked wrong," Nystrom said Monday. "It wasn't billowing or black, but it was heating the air – it wasn't right."
Nystrom pulled over near the three-story structure at 88 Otrobando Ave. and headed to the back of the property where a chilling sound was emanating from the attic area.
"I used to have a woodstove and know the sound of wood burning," he said.
Nystrom, joined by two other people, began knocking on a front door.
"There was a woman who was cooking breakfast and had no idea there was fire," he said. "I wished I knew who that couple was that helped."
Nystrom headed back to the rear of the building to a back porch where he was greeted by an eerie sight.
"Through the window I could see flames rolling like a wave inside, fire just enveloping the wall, so I got my butt off that porch," he said. "The flames looked two feet high."
Nystrom was knocking on doors to warn anyone inside to leave as the first firefighters arrived on scene.
"I know there were two people living there who'd just moved in," he said. "I feel so bad for all those people. They lost everything."
The fire, in the Yantic section of town, was reported at 12:30 p.m. and crews encountered heavy flames on arrival inside the three-story, balloon-construction structure, Yantic Volunteer Fire Company Chief Frank Blanchard said.
"Crews quickly contained the fire to the second floor, along with a rear portion of the third floor," he said. "There was an aggressive interior attack and we had assistance from mutual aid."
Blanchard said one firefighter was treated for a minor injury and released from care Sunday night. No residents were injured, though two pets died in the blaze. Several other animals were rescued.
The Red Cross was assisting displaced residents.
The 129-year-old building is owned by Krystal and Chance Martin of Canterbury, city assessor records show.
The fire remains under investigation, Acting Norwich Fire Chief Keith Wucik said on Monday.
"Those firefighters were going in in shifts and did a great job," Nystrom said. "But this was a bad, persistent fire."
In addition to the Yantic Fire Engine Co., firefighters from the East Great Plain, Taftville, Occum, Norwich, Laurel Hill, Bozrah, Franklin and Mohegan Tribal FAST departments responded to the fire.
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