Willimantic Building Collapses After Truck Snags Power Lines

Ten feet of brick crumbled from a building on West Main Street in Willimantic late Monday evening when a box truck snagged on overhead wires, ripping down the building's facade.

Willimantic police said the owner of Couto Auto Sales was parking a tractor-trailer in the company lot at 1535 Main Street around 6:50 p.m. when the truck became entangled in low-hanging power lines.

"As the truck pushed forward, some of the facade broke away and that's when we had the collision," explained Willimantic police spokesman Cpl. Stanley Parizo.

The wire, which ran from the Couto Auto building to an Eversource utility pole, came down and brought part of the building with it.

No one was hurt, but the historic building sustained heavy damage. Footage from the scene shows a gaping hole in the facade.

"The damage is significant. The insurance adjuster will have to come out. He's going to have to put up some tarp," Parizo said. "He's going to have to tarp this for now, but I think the whole business will have to be redone."

Matt Vertefeuille, spokesperson for the city of Windham, said the building dates back to the 1940s.

"It's three generations that own this business and it's sad to see damage done to a historic building," he said. "It's pretty dramatic when you see it."

Emergency crews cut electricity to the area and blocked off a section of West Main Street while they worked to make repairs and clear the scene. The road was shut down for about 90 minutes and reopened around 9:10 p.m., according to police.

Vertefeuille described the incident as a "best-case scenario" since no one was hurt and the structure is still standing. Police said they don't expect to file charges.

"He's a little shaky and a little upset with himself," Vertefeuille said of the business owner.

Nonetheless, Couto Auto Sales is open on Tuesday.

It's not yet clear how much it will cost to repair the damage.

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