Two people escaped a burning house on Walnut Tree Hill Road Thursday morning.
Newell Jones and Kathleen Vance were eating breakfast in the kitchen when they heard an alarm from a smoke detector. Then they saw smoke coming from the living room area on the other side of the house.
They got out and called the fire department.
Jones, 92, is the patriarch of one of Shelton’s oldest families.
Jones Family Farm has been in the family for five generations.
The quaint, 59-year-old house in question is part of the family’s land holdings on Walnut Tree Road off Route 110.
Vance is a family friend who was visiting from Florida.
Firefighters arriving to the scene saw flames shooting from the side of the house and heavy smoke flowing out the front door.
“There was heavy fire damage in the living room/sitting room area,” Shelton Fire Department Assistant Chief Mike Ullrich said. “It extended up to the second floor and throughout the rest of the house.”
It took firefighters about 10 minutes to get the fire under control. They were on the scene until about 11:30 a.m.
“The Jones’ are one of the two oldest families in the White Hills section. There was a lot of history damaged today,” said Shelton Fire Chief Francis Jones. “There were a lot of antiques and family heirlooms lost in there.”
With no hydrants in the area, Shelton called in tanker trucks from Monroe for assistance, Jones said.
Responding Shelton companies included White Hills, Huntington and Echo Hose.
Fire Marshal James Tortora said his office is investigating. He said the fire is not suspicious and that he’ll be ready to issue an official cause sometime Friday.
“We’re still looking at a few possible causes,” Tortora said.
Tortora said the preliminary damage estimate is about $400,000.
