Somersville (CT) Mill Fire Was Set: Officials

NBC Connecticut ^

[matt04]

Only a metal skeleton remains of Somersville Mill on Maple Street in Somers after fire on Saturday morning.

On Monday, officials from the fire department said it is suspicious and have deemed it arson.

The mill that spun fabric until 1969 and fire and police crews responded to the scene around 2:19 a.m. Crews from across the state and Massachusetts responded as well to assist.

For many Somers residents, this mill fire marked the end of an era.

“When I was a kid, me and my dad and the family, five kids used to come down in a ’54 Chevy pickup, sitting in the back of it, looking at the mill and my dad would tell me everything that was going on around here,” Larry Boulay, of Somers, said. “It’s a landmark. It’s a shame, I wish they would’ve done something with the building.”

“It is sad. A lot of peoples’ lives had been here – generations -- now to find it’s not there anymore. It kind of hurts a lot of people. A lot of stories,” Sheila Okraska, of Somers, said.

[matt04]

Courtesy The Hartford Courant

[Doogle]

http://enfield.patch.com/articles/residents-capture-somersville-mill-fire-on-video#video-10172187

[brityank]

Courtesy of your NBC News link:

This fire came about six months after a fire at the Somers Congregational Church, another historic building.

“We already had the church on the center of Somers, and now we have this. All of our historical things that the town has been made up of, and now all of a sudden It seems to be dissipating,” Okraska said.

The town had already invested thousands of dollars in infrastructure nearby. Now with the mill gone, Lisa Pellegrini, first select woman of Somers, sees a greener future.

“I think what would be really nice, because of the location, would be some type of park. It would be wonderful,“ she said.

Why wasn't any of that infrastructure money used for the church and mill if they were so much a part of the town identity?

[ExCTCitizen]

I knew that mill.... it was a landmark in town. Broad Brook had a landmark mill, too. Somers won’t be the same...

[Talisker]

Now with the mill gone, Lisa Pellegrini, first select woman of Somers, sees a greener future. “I think what would be really nice, because of the location, would be some type of park. It would be wonderful,“ she said.

What a coincidence, Lisa. You being politically advantaged by this fire and all.

By the way, you happen to own any gas cans?

[matt04]

From what I can tell, the "infrastructure" spending was mostly cosmetic street work and not on any sort of new fire apparatus according to a article published in February.

"The department has pumpers that are 31, 24 and 16 years old, as well as a 30-year-old tanker and 6-year-old tankers and a rescue truck. The department needs at least two active tankers, Schiessl said, because Somers is rural and does not have water hookups in many areas."

http://articles.courant.com/2012-02-02/community/hc-somers-firetrucks-0203-20120202_1_rescue-truck-new-truck-tanker