Historic Factory Fire In Vernon Now Being Considered 'Suspicious'

VERNON, CT — Authorities in Vernon are now considering the December factory fire on Brooklyn Street suspicious and have released images of a mysterious pickup truck that was seen at the historic building at the time of the blaze.

The fire broke out at 1:54 a.m. The entire red brick structure was quickly engulfed in flames and firefighters from Vernon and several area towns began an attack that turned out to be, as one police spokesman termed it, "a very long night." At about 9 a.m. the north side of the structure had collapsed, and the fire was still burning on the south side. Fire crews were at the scene for a good 24 hours.

Debris was strewn all over Brooklyn Street. The heat from the flames was so intense that siding on several homes across the street melted. No injuries were reported, however.

At a news conference Tuesday morning, Vernon Police Department spokesman Lt. Rob Marra said investigators have determined that the fire is suspicious. Video and images collected from nearby surveillance cameras show a dark-colored pickup pulling up to the factory at 114 Brooklyn St. The occupants of the truck can be seen entering the building minutes before the fire started.

The truck was also shown leaving the scene. Investigators could not make out the registration plate in the surveillance images, but Marra said the dark-colored truck could be a Dodge Ram.

The videos have been enhanced to be put out to the public and police are asking that anyone with information on it or its occupants or anything else that has to do with the overnight period that day to contact Det. Mike Patrizz at 860-872-9126 Ext. 3764. Members of the public can also call the Connecticut Arson Tip Line at 800-842-7766). An unspecified reward is available for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case, police said.

Marra said the fire isn't being called an arson, but he was adamant that the cause is suspicious.

"This is very serious," he said. "It was one of the biggest fires Vernon has ever experienced. If it is an arson, we would like to arrest the person responsible."

The building hails from the Victorian Era textile industry heyday in the Rockville section of Vernon. It had been mostly vacant for about two years before the fire, ever since the Ladd & Hall furniture store went out of business. It had been using some of the building as storage until 2020. It had also housed a machine shop.

The building was also once home to the Tober Baseball Manufacturing Co. after it had moved to the Rockville section of Vernon from Manchester in about 1954. Tober made baseballs and softballs, according to historical records.