The Day – Shooting, fire under investigation in New London

New London — Police are investigating a shooting at 48 Granite St., also the site of a structure fire, on Wednesday night.

Police Capt. Matthew Galante confirmed that a shooting took place but said he could not immediately provide additional details.

Firefighters responded to the blaze about 8 p.m. Wednesday. Once they broke out multiple windows on the front and side of the third floor of the residence, heavy black smoke poured out.

Neighbors in nearby houses and apartments were out on the street mingling or watching from their windows as firefighters deployed hoses to battle the blaze. Several neighbors, who didn’t want their names used, said they heard what sounded like shots fired before 8 p.m., and authorities came soon after.

New London Fire Chief Thomas Curcio said the fire was extinguished quickly — within 15 minutes of firefighters arriving on scene. He reported one injury, an unconscious person who had to be pulled out of the building and transported to Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, but said there was more to the story.

About 9:15 p.m., fire units had all but cleared out but, Curcio said, police were still on scene and what happened at 48 Granite is largely a police matter.

Curcio said everyone in the building “is going to be put up” and that between 10 and 12 people were displaced. In assessing damage to the building, he said one apartment is uninhabitable.

Two Lawrence + Memorial units, an Eversource truck, two Groton ambulances and a New London ambulance, and five New London ladder trucks and a fire SUV were on the scene, along with several city police vehicles. The corner of Granite and Williams streets was partially blocked to traffic.

Stephan Boodlal, who lives in the bottom floor of the apartment building, said police woke him shortly before 8 p.m. and instructed him to leave his apartment. “One officer came to the side window and knocked on it with a flashlight and yelled something, then I heard banging at the door,” Boodlal said. “This is not the first time police have been here.” He said there was no damage in his apartment.

A plaque at the front of the building says the structure was built in 1847.

As of 8:38 p.m., the fire had been knocked down. Police and some firefighters remained on scene as of 8:55 p.m. and American Red Cross personnel arrived shortly before 9 p.m.

This is a developing story.

s.spinella@theday.com