Christina Knight was sitting in her bedroom Wednesday (Nov. 25) on Ansonia’s Olson Drive when she heard a smoke detector go off in the apartment’s hallway.
She went to investigate. Nothing in the kitchen was on fire. But she could smell burning.
She looked in the living room and saw flames — spreading fast.
“Thank God my (8‑year-old) son was outside at the time,” Knight said during an interview Monday.
She dialed 911 to report the blaze, then escaped from the apartment.
Luckily, there were no injuries.
“I just got out before the smoke got really bad,” she said.
In a story published immediately after the fire occurred, the Valley Indy reported that neighbors said the apartment’s tenant was not home at the time the fire started.
Knight commented on the story contradicting those accounts and spoke to the Valley Indy Monday.
Firefighters responded to the 911 call and were able to snuff out the flames before they spread beyond the apartment.
But the damage wrought by the flames and smoke inside destroyed pretty much everything she owned, Knight said.
Baby pictures. Birth certificates and other vital documents. Money.
Just to name a few.
“My whole life was in that apartment,” Knight said. “I just went out and bought Christmas presents. Now we have nothing at all. Nothing.”
She and her 8‑year-old son have been temporarily relocated to a motel about 20 miles away, complicating the single mom’s daily work-school routine.
The Red Cross gave her some money to help with living expenses. The Riverside Apartments, where she lived, are federally subsidized.
A volunteer-driven collection has also been started by Ansonia resident Missy Lundeen, with locations at the Peachwave in Derby — 49 Pershing Drive — and Seccombe’s Men’s Shop in Ansonia — 171 Main St.
Lundeen said Monday that people can donate toys, clothing, and non-perishable food items until Dec. 6 at either of the two locations.
Click here for more specifics.
Fire Marshal Ralph Tingley said Monday that the cause of Wednesday’s fire is undetermined, unless new information comes up.
He said that while he can’t be sure what specifically caused the blaze, he determined it wasn’t electrical in nature after inspecting wiring in the apartment.
“We did rule out the electrical portion of it,” Tingley said.
A resident of the apartment for the past five years, Knight said Monday she’s raised concerns about a litany of issues there — leaks, electrical problems, peeling paint, holes in the building — to no avail.
She emailed the Valley Indy pictures she took in September and October documenting the problems.
Article continues after two of the photos.
The Riverside Apartments on Olson Drive were built in 1962.
The housing authority is working on a plan to redevelop the property and plans on knocking down the buildings.
But Knight said that maintenance of the property has fallen by the wayside in the meantime.
“I think that this is the reason why they’re slacking on coming to fix our apartments,” Knight said. “We shouldn’t have to live in these conditions because we’re about to move.”
Knight’s concerns echo comments about maintenance issues made at meetings this summer by residents of housing authority properties citywide, according to minutes of the housing authority’s June and July meetings.
At an Aug. 26 meeting, the housing authority’s operations director gave an update on some of the issues.
The Valley Indy left a phone message and email Monday seeking comment on Knight’s concerns and an update on the redevelopment plan with Troy White, the housing authority’s executive director.
