Authorities made a gruesome discovery early Thursday when they found human remains in a structure that burned following an explosion that capped an hours-long attempt by officers to coax a barricaded man from the North Haven property.
A woman, who sources say was held hostage for several days but had escaped, contacted North Haven police about 2:30 p.m., bringing authorities to her Quinnipiac Avenue home. Officers spent several hours trying to get the woman’s estranged husband out, but as the standoff progressed, a barn on the property exploded, touching off a massive fire.
Officials believe the man was inside the barn when it exploded. They said remains were found in the structure, but have not identified the individual as they await an autopsy by the office of the chief medical examiner.
The SWAT team members broke a window on the building and, as they did, they heard the man yell something loudly before the explosion, sources said. It was full of potentially flammable materials such as chlorine containers for the pool.
They do not yet know the cause of the fire. The state police, New Haven and FBI bomb squads were combing through the rubble Thursday morning looking for clues.
Police are not sure how the wife managed to escape from the house on Wednesday afternoon at about 2:30 p.m., but she ran to a neighbor, who called 911. Sources said that the man had held her inside the house for several days, possibly going back to Saturday.
By the time the barn exploded, six hours after the woman contacted authorities, North Haven police had been joined by a regional SWAT team. Police officials said Thursday morning that five East Haven officers, three North Haven officers and an officer from Branford — all members of the SWAT Team — were hospitalized.
“They all suffered injuries consistent with the blast,” North Haven Deputy Police Chief Jonathan Mulhern said.
Officials with Yale-New Haven Hospital said they received a total of nine patients following the explosion. They were all in fair condition Thursday morning. By midday, East Haven police confirmed three of their officers had been released from the hospital, but two remained with serious injuries.
First Selectman Michael Freda said he, Police Chief Thomas McLoughlin and chaplain Father Michael Santiago visited with the officers and their families at Yale New Haven Hospital Thursday afternoon. Two, he said, had been released before they arrived.
He said those still in the hospital were positive and upbeat.
“These men are true heroes,” Freda said. “They were the frontlines who went into that barn that exploded.”
Governor Dannel P. Malloy released a statement on the explosion, saying: “Our hearts go out to the brave first responders who put their lives on the line, and we wish those injured a safe and speedy recovery. Yesterday’s tragedy serves as a stark reminder that domestic violence is a serious issue that must continue to be addressed and remain at the forefront of the national conversation.”
Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman was quick to shine a light on the woman’s actions. In a statement, Wyman said: “I applaud the woman who reported this incident, she showed tremendous bravery and courage. Her actions may have saved lives, including her own.”
The blaze burned through the night and firefighters were still working Thursday morning to extinguish some of the structures on the property.
Sources say the woman was severely beaten. She was being treated at a hospital, but officials declined to comment on her condition. The husband’s fate remains unclear early Thursday, although Trooper Kelly Grant, a state police spokeswoman, said shortly before 2 a.m. that she believed the man was in the barn when it exploded.
Police said that he was barricaded alone at the time they responded.
The woman living in the home filed for divorce in New Haven Superior Court from her husband on April 18, saying the “marriage had broken down irretrievably.” She did not elaborate. He was scheduled to answer in court on May 8. The couple were married on Sept. 24, 1977, in New Haven.
According to the court filing, she was not seeking alimony and asked the court for a “fair division of property and debt.”
The filing said for now they were representing themselves and that there were no children under 23 in the household. The home address she listed in the file was 385 Quinnipiac Ave., North Haven.
Neighbor John Marotto said that, immediately after the blast, “I heard them screaming. They got blown away, back from the garage. I saw a fireball come off the back of the garage, and then the roof was gone. The side facing our house was totally gone. It was unbelievable — the noise, unbelievable. I thought I was in a war zone.” Marotto’s property abuts the property where the explosion occurred.
The police response began Wednesday afternoon when the domestic violence incident was reported to North Haven police, said state police Master Sgt. Marc Gelven. The man then barricaded himself in the home, and police and a regional SWAT team responded.Freda said police negotiated with a man for “a couple hours.”
“Over the course of a couple hours our officers were trying to coax the gentlemen out and defuse the situation,” Freda said. “Four to six of our officers were searching the back barn area when there was an explosion in the barn back there. Four were taken to hospital with abrasions and possible concussions.”
Freda said he was not aware of any previous incidents involving police at the home.
One neighbor described the man living in the Quinnipiac Avenue home as a recluse who was confrontational and irrational. They said he put signs up around his property ordering people to stay off and at times littered his yard with with different ceramic toilets and sinks, and filled 55-gallon drums with what neighbors did not know. He worked as a plumber.
After arguments with neighbors he was known to blast music in the direction of the neighbor the argument had been with. He would run his lawn mower into the night when neighbors were having parties.
State police SWAT teams responded to the scene after the explosion and were assisting North Haven police. The state police central district major crime squad took over the investigation late Wednesday and was being assisted by state police fire and explosion investigators, the FBI and ATF.
“One of the aspects of this investigation is determining how this fire started,” Grant said. Detectives will also be probing what led up to the explosion.
Police could be heard calling out over loudspeakers to the man. Police were still trying to contact the man and firefighters were battling the blaze near midnight.
“Please come out the front door, we’re here to help you,” police called out. “If you do not come out immediately you will be subject to arrest. Come out, we want to help you, but you have to come out.”
Police evacuated homes adjacent to the property and asked other neighbors to remain in their homes.
“What we saw last night was a large group of first responders trying to solve a very tumultuous situation,” Freda said.
The property where the explosion occurred is on Quinnipiac Avenue near Orient Lane. Earlier Wednesday night North Haven police had urged people to avoid the area.
Anthony Laudano, who lives a short distance from the house, said the explosion broke plates in his kitchen, shattered a window and knocked pictures off the walls.
“I honestly thought it was an airplane crashing, it was so loud,” Laudano said. “I’ve lived in this neighborhood for 20 years. This is the craziest thing I’ve ever experienced. I mean, this is a quiet neighborhood.”
In his eight years as first selectman, Freda said Wednesday night’s explosion was “an anomaly” and the largest incident he’s seen.
He said that section of town is considered a quiet, residential area.
“This was an anomaly, you don’t see this in North Haven,” Freda said.
“As municipal leaders we recognize there is a level of anxiety, turmoil, tumult that exists in our communities and what we never know is the trigger of those wide range of emotions that emanate from people’s daily lives,” Freda added.
Courant reporters Matthew Ormseth and Dave Owens, and correspondent Naedine Hazell contributed to this report.
