Politics & Government

Joe Courtney and John Kissel View Devastation

The congressman and senator came to Somers on Wednesday to talk about the Somers Congregational Church fire and to see the building firsthand.

On Wednesday afternoon, Congressman Joe Courtney and Sen. John Kissel stopped by to learn about the and to see the damage.

Both were amazed at what they saw.

“Coming down the road, it’s like the grandfather in the town is now missing,” Kissel said. “It just doesn’t look right.”

Find out what's happening in Ellington-Somerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Courtney said, “It just takes your breath away in terms of what this town has been through.”

The men met with Rev. Barry Cass, First Selectwoman Lisa Pellegrini, and selectmen Bud Knorr and Kathy Devlin to discuss the fire and what is being done now.

Find out what's happening in Ellington-Somerswith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Pellegrini told of the plans to have the – which Cass said helps 60-70 people per week – in the town hall auditorium, and how the hope is to move the to .

“We’re trying to help out,” she said. “It goes back to the church has helped out so many and has touched so many in this community. So it’s our turn to really help the church and its members.”

Cass noted that the mobile Foodshare unit that comes every other Wednesday, will still come, and that power has been restored to part of the building so the freezers can be utilized.

The effort was discussed and everyone was very appreciative of the effort of the first responders.

“It was wonderful,” Pellegrini said. “I really give a lot of credit to our for really taking a look at (603 Main St.) and saving that building, which has historical significance.”

Devlin added, “Those were amazing. The power and the surge from them was phenomenal in terms of being able to douse it.”

Deputy Fire Chief Frank Falcone would later tell the group that the firefighters pumped over 5,500 gallons a minute for over four hours.

“That’s a lot of water,” he said. “That’s an amazing amount of water.”

After the conversation, Courtney and Kissel were given a tour around the outside and inside of the building. The first stop was in front of town hall where the siding was melted by the heat of the fire.

“The containment was absolutely incredible in terms of what they did,” Knorr said. “It could have jumped to this building and destroyed this building.”

Kissel said he was amazed when he walked in and saw the damage on the town hall.

“I took a picture of it,” he said. “It was like, ‘Oh my God, it was hot.’”

It was actually so hot that it damaged one of the fire trucks that was parked in front of the town hall. Some flying embers also burned through some hose.

The selectmen told of what it was like to stand in front of town hall and watch the church burn.

“We were standing over there and it felt like your whole heart and soul was just ripped out,” Pellegrini said. “It was amazing.”

“I think we were just horrified,” Devlin said.

Once the group made it across the street, the first stop was the bell, which was badly damaged from the 1,300 degree heat and 80-foot fall. Cass said that this is the church’s original bell.

Falcone, who joined the group outside the church, said that he was the one who got to pull the bell out of the debris.

“It was kind of an honor for me,” he said.

While gathered around the bell, Cass told the story of an amazing story of survival for some church history. He said that there is a book of obituaries of people who are buried in the memorial garden, and a book of donations and memories. These books were believed to be missing, however, they weren’t.

“(Fire Chief) Gary Schiessl had the books,” Cass said. “He said, ‘One of the firefighters put these in my truck.’ He said, ‘They thought they looked like they should be saved.’”

Despite all the hardship he has endured, Cass is still being incredibly positive and is thankful for all the support he and the members of his have received. He mentioned the people who have made donations – no matter how big or small, the congregations that have made the offer to worship with them or to use their building, and had high praise for the teams that are working on cleanup.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here