House fire likely a total loss

No injuries reported in Monday blaze

Tom Milstead
Posted 12/12/18

A house fire in the 3600 block of Converse Street Monday afternoon is likely a total loss, according to Torrington Volunteer Fire Department Chief Lance Petsch.

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House fire likely a total loss

No injuries reported in Monday blaze

Posted

TORRINGTON – A house fire in the 3600 block of Converse Street Monday afternoon is likely a total loss, according to Torrington Volunteer Fire Department Chief Lance Petsch. 

Members of the TVFD, Lingle Fire Department, Torrington Police Department, Goshen County Sheriff’s Office, Torrington EMS and Goshen County Emergency Management responded to the call. The inhabitants weren’t home at the time of the fire, and a dog was safely rescued from the dwelling, thanks to the actions of a neighbor and TPD officers.

“That’s what you hope for,” Petsch said. “You don’t hope for the fire, but you hope that you don’t have injuries or loss of life and you don’t lose any animals. At the end of the day, that’s a good thing. Unfortunately, somebody’s house is probably destroyed.

“I would be surprised if it’s not a total loss. There is very significant damage.” 

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the state fire marshal, Petsch said. 

“Until he gets here and goes through everything, he might be able to say ‘this is where it started,’” Petsch said. “He might say ‘let me do a report and go back and study my pictures and I’ll get the report.’ Really, until he gets here and does his report, we don’t have much information” on the cause of the blaze.

Torrington firefighters were the first fire personnel to arrive. The firefighters removed multiple propane canisters from the home and vented the smoke from the interior of the house by using a chainsaw to cut a hole in the roof. Petsch said the TVFD firefighters were able to suppress the fire quickly and safely. 

“They did a really good job,” he said. “That first engine when they got there, they pulled an attack line and they had a good idea where the fire was. A few people went in through the front door and I think they had a really good knock-down on the fire. They kind of got it isolated in the back of the house.”