New Haven Fire Department responds to blaze at one of its firehouses

NEW HAVEN — City firefighters from the Whitney Avenue firehouse were out fighting a fire on Nicoll Street Friday evening when the call came in that there was a fire at 350 Whitney Ave. — their firehouse.

Many of the firefighters, who were just finishing on Nicoll Street, which was reported at 5:47 pm., rushed back and, accompanied by colleagues from other firehouses, fought the fire in their own firehouse, Fire Chief John A. Alston Jr. said at the scene.

A city police officer driving by the firehouse at 6:09 p.m. noticed smoke and flames on the second floor and used his police radio to call it in, Alston said, as firefighters — many of them from the Whitney Avenue firehouse — cleaned up after the fire was out.

The New Haven Fire Department fights a fire in one of its firehouses on Whitney Avenue in New Haven on Friday, March 23, 2018. The New Haven Fire Department fights a fire in one of its firehouses on Whitney Avenue in New Haven on Friday, March 23, 2018. Photo: Mark Zaretsky / Hearst Connecticut Media Photo: Mark Zaretsky / Hearst Connecticut Media Image 1 of / 20 Caption Close New Haven Fire Department responds to blaze at one of its firehouses 1 / 20 Back to Gallery

The firehouse fire began in close proximity to a kitchen in the southeast corner of the building “but there is so much soot and smoke up there, we don’t want to place the origin at this time,” Alston said. “We’re going to let the state fire marshal do that for us.”

At 6:25 p.m., a fire officer reported the fire was extinguished.

No one was injured but damage to the firehouse was “quite extensive,” Alston said.

“We’ve called the state police in because it is a city building and we want an independent investigation,” Alston said as tired-looking, sooty firefighters from the Whitney Avenue Firehouse rolled up hoses and later milled around and waited for instructions after the fire.

“From the second floor, there’s a lot of smoke and water damage,” he said. “Upstairs, there’s smoke and water in the dormitories and living areas and there’s extensive damage going in toward this top corner over here.”

None of the apparatus that operates out of Whitney Avenue was damaged, Alston said. “We’re just losing the location at this time. We’re grateful that no one got hurt or injured, but it is a concern to us to get the station back up and running as quickly as possible.

“I know the firefighters are hurting — the firehouse, we spend more than a third of our lives in the firehouse,” he said. “It’s personal for us. So we’re going to be working with the firefighters while we clean up, investigate.

“We also have the state fire marshal here,” Alston said. “We also have the Building Department and we also have Engineering to assess the damage.

“It’s going to be a long process as they investigate and we clean up, allow the firefighters to get their personal belongings out and then we’ll have a cleanup company crew come in,” Alston said.

The Whitney Avenue Firehouse houses Engine 8 and Squad 1, Alston said.

For now, “We’re going to take the two companies” and base them out of nearby stations, he said.

“They’re not too far. Dixwell Station on Goffe Street, Engine 8 will ride out of there,” Alston said. Squad 1 “will ride out of Central Station which is on Grand Avenue, which is not far from this district, as well,” he said.

They’ll continue to respond to fires in the area they serve, Alston said.

As firefighters worked to put out the fire, police set up traffic points, closing down roads — including Whitney Avenue, one of the city’s major arteries, which was closed for at least two hours.