BUILDING KNOWN FOR DRUG ACTIVITY GUTTED BY FIRE

Firefighters rescued two people while battling a blaze Monday night at an
Orange Street apartment building that city and state officials have pushed
to shut down because of its reputation as a drug haven.

Two people were stranded on a fire escape on the side of the four- story
building and flames were pouring from the windows when firefighters arrived
at 111 Orange St. at about 9:30 p.m., Deputy Fire Chief John Corvi said. No
one was injured.

It did not take long to tame the blaze, but the fire gutted the building.
Heat singed siding on a house next door and drove about six people in that
house out fearing the fire would spread.

Corvi said fire officials had not determined the cause of the fire.

The dilapidated building was already well on its way to being history
before the blaze destroyed it. Last month, state prosecutors got a court
ruling ordering owner D&W Associates of East Hampton to seal the six vacant
units in the eight-unit building, which has been well-known as a place to
buy heroin, cocaine and other narcotics.

City lawyers also have been trying to take the property through
foreclosure. The owners owe about $7,000 in back taxes.

Under the court ruling, the two occupied units were to be sealed as soon as
the tenants moved out. Corvi said he could not determine if the two people
rescued were tenants. They apparently left the scene before he could talk
to them.

Neighbors have consistently complained about drug activity in the building,
and police have described the place as a regular hangout for drug users and
dealers. In the vacant units, the floors are littered with empty bags and
used needles.

In the past year, police have seized heroin, cocaine, a loaded semi-
automatic handgun and drug-weighing scales from the building, which is less
than 1,500 feet from Sacred Heart Elementary School.

The building would become the first residential property to be shut down
under the state's new nuisance abatement law, which took effect in October.
Owners of the building and state and city officials are scheduled to appear
in New Britain Superior Court on Jan. 6 to discuss the building's fate.

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski