Four firefighters were injured while battling a fire at a multi-family house in New Haven on Monday evening.
Firefighters said multiple callers reported a house on fire in the 400 block of Dixwell Avenue shortly after 7 p.m.
Several crews responded to the fire and four firefighters were injured, according to New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker. Of the four firefighters who were injured, two were transported to the hospital. Their injuries are described as non-life threatening.
New Haven Fire Department Chief John Alston says the heat and humidity created challenges for firefighters.
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“So any time the weather is like this, we're at 88, 90 degree weather, high humidity. The firefighters are already sweating in their gear. So that first alarm and second alarm crew gets beat up pretty bad. The fires are already hot. They become emaciated. So we rotate the crews as quickly as we possibly can, as often as we can," he said.
The type of house that the fire was at also created challenges for crews.
“Just stubborn fire with a building of this type of construction. There are knee walls. There's a large attic space. There's the fire load itself and not being able to place the origin right away. There was heavy fire throughout the structure on arrival. So just getting in, getting to the scene of the fire was stubborn," Alston added.
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Seven adults and one child are displaced by the fire. None of the occupants reported injuries.
There appears to be significant damage to the home.
"It's under investigation right now, but with this amount of damage, it's going to take time for them to dig out the scene and try to place the cause and origin," Alston said.
It's unclear what may have started the fire.
