Old Saybrook home destroyed in fire

OLD SAYBROOK, Conn. (WTNH) -- An Old Saybrook home collapsed after it was consumed by flames.

Neighbors say they heard what sounded like an explosion from the garage around 11:53 a.m. when the fire started.

The flames spread quickly to the entire home on Ingham Hill Road.
 
"The only thing close I've experienced to it was combat in Afghanistan," said neighbor Holland Ahern.

Ahern, a marine reservist, ran inside the house to make sure everybody was out.

"I saw a shovel, I grabbed the shovel and smashed the door open with a shovel. Ran inside and started screaming out names," he said. "No one was answering. I stayed in there about a minute, but smoke and everything was so intense I had to get out."

The owner of the home returned from the grocery store to the shocking sight.

"She had told us that no one was in the home, so we knew other than a pet there were no people in the home," said Old Saybrook Fire Chief JT Dunn.

Water had to be trucked in using nine tankers from six departments. Firefighters were rotated to the front line because of the heat.

"We won't put anybody into the house," said Westbrook Fire Chief Mike Jenkins. "The floor's collapsing, the second down to the first floor, so nobody's allowed to go in."

Fortunately no firefighters were hurt, however when the first engine truck pulled up we're told when the firefighters started pulling out lines they disturbed an underground wasp nest so some of them were stung.

They got firefighter Wayne Wysocki dozens of times.

"Well it was my head, my neck, my arms, it was pretty scary," he said.