Bell factory owner vows to rebuild

EAST HAMPTON, Conn. (WTNH) -- The owner of the Bevin Bell factory vowed that the company would rise from the ashes after a huge fire destroyed the East Hampton landmark.

U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal toured what's left of the Bevin Bell factory on Thursday with owner Matthew Bevin. Like most people around East Hampton, he's hoping the company can return to prominence.

"To mitigate what we see here to make this safe and usable again," Bevin explained to the Senator. 

"There's no question in your mind that you're going to rebuild," Blumenthal asked Bevin.

"There's no question," he replied.

"There's none in mine," Blumenthal agreed.

"We're gonna shake on that, we're going to make it happen," Bevin said.

Late Saturday, a fast moving fire fueled by exploding canisters of propane gas destroyed the 34,000 square foot building.

"The American way is that you get back up again and Bevin have been making bells in the land we're standing on for 180 years and I'm a Bevin, I'm standing here and I'm gonna make bells here," Bevin said.

Blumenthal promises to put together what he calls Team Belltown to help rebuild the Bevin factory by bringing together federal, state and local resources.

"EPA grants that may be available for clean-up, small business administration loans that should be available for low interest kinds of resources to be made available," he said.

A return of Bevin Bells can't come soon enough for locals like Lionel Robinson.

"This is one of the places that was well known around the world, not just in the United States," he said.

Adding insult to tragedy, police also say hundreds of pounds of brass bells were stolen from the smoldering factory in the hours after the fire.

"It is a tragedy that people use this opportunity to take advantage of someone else's loss, someone else's pain, someone else's suffering to try to make a quick and expedient buck," Bevin said.

A time-frame wasn't discussed, but Blumenthal said that he expects to see a tremendous volunteer effort mounted, in addition to the government resources needed for the re-building effort.

Only time will tell if we'll see a return of the Belltown that's been a part of the fabric of Connecticut since the 1830's.