Fire officials are searching a vacant building for possible victims after fire spread through three multifamily houses in Norwich early Monday morning.
Seventeen people from seven families were displaced from two multiple-family homes on Boswell Avenue and Oak Street after fire broke out in a vacant building between the two buildings just after 1 am., fire officials said.
Firefighters officials said squatters are known to occupy the vacant building.
The fire in the vacant building was so intense, it quickly spread to the two neighboring homes.
It took Norwich firefighters more than two hours to bring fires under control and investigators expect to remain at the scene all morning.
The displaced families were brought to the Thames Academy on East Main Street. The reception center is closing this morning and the Red Cross is working to provide temporary lodging for the displaced families.
