City apologizes for early morning robo-call

George P. Hassett                                                                                                             
                                                                                                               

Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone is apologizing for a botched robo-call that went out to 24,000 residents
across the city at 3:37 Tuesday morning. The call, which notified residents of a three-alarm fire on Walnut Street that damaged two buildings and left six people homeless, was supposed to go out to less than 40 people.

"I want to offer a sincere apology to everyone who was awakened by this call," said Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone in a statement. "While there is no excuse for the aggravation and inconvenience caused by this call, I hope my fellow residents will understand that this is an isolated incident, and that the Connect CTY system remains a very valuable tool for getting the word out on time-sensitive messages."

Fire officials said the blaze started in a shed and spread to two homes at 79 and 81 Walnut St. The building at 81 Walnut St. is currently unoccupied. The cause of the fire is under investigation, fire officials said.

One occupant from the third story unit at 79 Walnut St. said he was awakened by the sound of flames crackling and at first thought it was rain, according to city officials. He saw the flames through his window and alerted the other occupants of the building, dialing 911 on his cell phone as he fled the house, officials said.

By the time fire companies arrived on the scene, the fire had extended into both buildings. Ladder 2's firefighters raised their aerial ladder and used water supplied by Engine 1 to knock down the fire in the garage and the exterior fire on the two adjacent houses.

One firefighter was treated at the scene for minor injuries. As many as 20 people from surrounding houses were temporarily evacuated to a shelter in the lobby of 25 Highland Ave., but were returned to their homes once the fire was brought under control at approximately 5 a.m.

The six people living at 79 Walnut St. can not return to their homes, and American Red Cross volunteers are now working with them to secure temporary shelter.

Connect CTY is a sort of reverse 311 that allows city departments to notify thousands of residents in a matter of minutes. The calls inform locals of public safety alerts, roadwork or emergencies in their neighborhood. Tuesday's mistake, Kelleher said, was out of the ordinary.

"We've been using this technology since August, and it's been helpful in speeding up the internal notification process for emergency responders," said Chief Kelleher. "This is the first time we have had any problems using the system, and you can be sure I'll be working hard to make certain that we never have this problem again."