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The incident took place in Hartford County just after midnight on Monday, May 8 at 50 Hillside St. in East Hartford.
According to Officer Marc Caruso of the East Hartford Police, officers were dispatched to a check welfare complaint at 50 Hillside St. While there, officers spotted heavy smoke coming from the first floor, which was completely unrelated to the initial check welfare complaint.
Officers called for the Fire Department and immediately started getting residents to safety as multiple floors needed to be evacuated, Caruso said.
"Officers entered the building, despite the heavy smoke, and rescued dozens of residents by getting them outside to safety," Caruso said.
They carried a woman in her wheelchair down multiple flights of stairs, through heavy smoke before running back into the building to assist more residents, he added.
The fire was found in the basement and quickly extinguished by the fire department.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation at the time.
Two officers were treated at St. Francis Hospital for smoke inhalation and released to return to patrol duties.
"All residents were safely evacuated from the building due to the exceptional bravery of the officers on the scene," Caruso said.
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