The ammo went off during the fire, becoming fuel for the already hot flames.
As soon as firefighters got inside the house on 318 South Main St., they knew putting the fire out would be trickier than usual.
For starters, they couldn't get to the fire. It was in the basement. And there were piles of debris and personal belongings stacked up shoulder high, preventing firefighters from getting down to the flames.
But making matters much worse, there was a large cache of weapons and ammunition inside the house. Ammunition firefighters say exploded when the flames hit it.
No on was hurt, but firefighters say there were some dicey moments as they were pushed back by the wall of heat coming from the ignited gun powder.
"At some point this ignited," said Lt. Mike O'Donnell of the West Hartford Fire Dept. "And you just get pushed back, its so hot. Very quick, very hot."
