The Latest: Woman held hostage, escaped before explosion

The Associated Press
The Associated Press

NORTH HAVEN, Conn. (AP) — The Latest on an explosion during a standoff in Connecticut (all times local):

3:45 p.m.

A Connecticut official says a woman was held hostage for several days before escaping and calling police hours before an explosion that left one person dead and nine officers injured.

North Haven First Selectman Michael Freda says officers at the scene told him the woman was able to get out of the home and call authorities Wednesday. Officers tried for hours to get a barricaded man to come out before the explosion.

Police say a person was found dead on the property. The identity has not been released.

The officers were treated for non-life-threatening injuries. Two were discharged from a hospital Thursday.

The cause of the blast is under investigation.

Court records show a husband and wife lived on the property and she filed for divorce two weeks ago.

____

10 a.m.

Court records show a divorce proceeding between a husband and wife who own a Connecticut home where an explosion injured nine police officers during a standoff with a suspect.

The records show Deborah Sayre filed for divorce from John Sayre on April 18 and checked a box that said the marriage had “broken down irretrievably.”

The documents show the Sayres live at the home in North Haven where police responded Wednesday and encountered a barricaded man. North Haven police say a building on the property exploded later in the night while a SWAT team was negotiating with the man.

Authorities say a person was found dead in the building. The identity has not been released.

The officers are hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

____

9:40 a.m.

Authorities say that a body has been found in a Connecticut building after an explosion during a standoff with police that left nine officers injured.

Trooper Kelly Grant said that the remains of one unidentified person was found in a building at the home in North Haven Thursday morning.

North Haven officials say the blast happened at a barn behind a home Wednesday night while police were negotiating with a man after his wife called police to report domestic violence.

The officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries. There are five officers injured from East Haven, three from North Haven and one from Branford.

Firefighters were continuing to work on the fire.

___

9 a.m.

Authorities say that a body has been found in a Connecticut building after an explosion during a standoff with police that left nine officers injured.

Trooper Kelly Grant said that the remains of one unidentified person was found in a building at the home in North Haven Thursday morning.

North Haven officials say the blast happened at a barn behind a home Wednesday night while police were negotiating with a man who had taken his wife hostage.

The officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries. There are five officers injured from East Haven, three from North Haven and one from Branford.

Kelly says that a woman had called police to report domestic violence before the explosion Wednesday night.

Firefighters were continuing to work on the fire.

___

1 a.m.

A fiery explosion at a barricade scene in Connecticut has injured up to eight police officers.

North Haven officials say the blast happened at a barn behind a home Wednesday night while police were negotiating with a man who had taken his wife hostage.

The officers suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

North Haven police have not said whether the suspect is in custody, describing it as “an active, ongoing scene.”

Town officials say the wife escaped before the explosion.

Residents near the home said on the police department’s Facebook page that they heard the blast and felt their own homes shake. Additional police rushed to the scene as the fire raged, and sounds of smaller explosions also were heard.

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.