The West Hartford Fire Department recognized Elaina Zito, her two daughters, and her niece for their actions on July 1, when a fire broke out at a Park Road home.

By Ronni Newton

It was a hot and sunny Wednesday morning, the first day of July, and Elaina Zito was heading to the Connecticut shore with her two young daughters and her niece for a promised day at the beach. But before they even got on the highway, the plans for the day were altered, and they turned into heroes.

“If it didn’t happen to me, I don’t know if I would believe it,” Zito said in a phone interview.

Two days earlier, she said, she was watching a TV show in the evening and her daughters – Charlotte “Charlie” (7) and Mia (4) – were in the room. On the show there was a house fire. “I got all choked up,” she said. While her daughters were concerned, it wasn’t the right time to talk with her them about why that impacted her, but Zito said they would talk about it the next day.

First thing the next morning, Mia asked her mom about her reaction, and she told the girls that when she was 12 her house burnt down. The family was living in Cheshire at the time, and her dad was in the house, but got out safely. They lost almost all of their possession though – with the exception of family photos which happened to be out on a table because they had been sorting through them. One of the firefighters scooped the photos up and saved the irreplaceable memories, and Zito, who went on to become a nurse, has always had deep gratitude and admiration for how first responders help people.

“They had some questions,” she said, and after she told her story they talked about what to do if there was a fire, who to call. That conversation took on extra meaning just the next day.

They were westbound on Park Road, about to get on the highway and head to the beach.

“We were at the light, about to turn left onto the 84 ramp,” she said. In addition to her two daughters, Zito had her niece, Katherine “Kit” Plominski (5), who was visiting from Boston, in the car. The girls saw the smoke streaming from the house that’s directly opposite the highway ramp, and alerted Zito that there might be a fire.

What happened next is the reason that Zito, her daughters, and her niece were presented with the Citizen’s Recognition Award, Fire Chief Greg Priest presented the awards at a ceremony also attended by Town Manger Rick Ledwith, Police Chief Vernon Riddick, and leadership and multiple members of both the fire and police departments at West Hartford Fire Department Station 2 on July 22. All received certificates recognizing their actions that “directly contributed to the West Hartford Fire Department’s mission of protecting life and property by providing the finest fire, rescue, and EMS service possible to the citizens of this community.”

Zito said she happened to be the only person at the light, and when the girls told her they saw smoke she was able to immediately cut across the several lanes of Park Road, pull into the circular driveway in front of the house, and call 911. She couldn’t find the house number at first, and got out of the car while she was talking the dispatcher, and said a couple was walking by on the sidewalk and offered to help out, and the woman stayed with the kids who were still in the car with the air conditioning on.

Zito said while she was on the phone a frantic man, who had sustained significant burns, ran out of the house. Then her nursing skills and training really kicked in and she was able to provide assistance to him until paramedics arrived.

The girls are normally very active children, she said. “They were super calm. Very chill.”

There was a very large response to the fire, and Zito said her car was boxed in for a while. Chief Priest came over and talked to the girls, and brought them to the grassy area behind the “West Hartford” sign, out of the way of the action. Someone from the fire department brought them hats. Police Ofc. Lauren Rieger brought bags and stickers, all of which helped the girls remain calm as the victim was treated for his injuries and transported to an area hospital, and as crews battled the blaze and conducted overhaul.

After about an hour, with the fire out, police escorted Zito and the girls back to the car, and helped her navigate out of the driveway so they could resume their intended plans.

“We did make it to the beach,” Zito said, and they spent the rest of the day in Old Lyme – minus one Barbie water bottle and a beach blanket that she had used in assisting the victim.

Zito said she and her husband, Andrew, who works in the construction industry, spent a lot of time talking to their daughters about the great thing they had done, “driving in the message that you saw something was wrong and you knew to say something.”

Then, she said, Chief Priest reached out and told them others thought so, too, and confirmed the plans to honor her and the three girls with the Citizen’s Recognition Award at a ceremony at Fire Station 2 on July 22.

Zito attended with her daughters, and her parents, Bill Heiple and Donna Mitchell – who moved to West Hartford during the pandemic – also attended. Zito’s sister, Bonnie Heiple, came from Boston with Kit.

Deputy Chief Jarrad Smith told them at the ceremony that their actions “remind us that selflessness and courage does not always wear a uniform.” He noted that what began as their “ordinary drive quickly became an extraordinary act of service.” The girls knew something was wrong, and immediately spoke up, he said.

“In a world filled with distractions, where it is easy to become absorbed in our own lives, these young people demonstrated awareness, compassion, and the confidence to speak up when they saw something that could impact someone else. Those qualities are not accidental – they are learned, and they reflect the values that have clearly been taught in their home,” said Smith. He said that Zito, as a parent, “should be incredibly proud. She has clearly raised children who are observant, caring, and willing to act when others may need help. They understood that when something seems wrong, you don’t simply drive by – you say something.”

“It’s a great to see people showing care and concern, and taking appropriate action,” Priest told We-Ha.com. “The timely notification and staying to help guide responders to an injured person and to the location of the fire likely led to more quickly getting medical attention to the injured party and ultimately efficient fire suppression,” he said. The longer a fire is left to burn, the larger it gets and the greater the possibility of life and property damage, as well as increased risk to the responders, he said.

“We live in such a busy society, it would have been easy to call and keep going but instead she stopped (inconveniencing her and the kids) and was able to provide the exact location to responders. We encourage people not to risk their own safety or help without the right background or skills – but in this case, as a nurse trying to assist with the care was appropriate and selfless,” Priest added.

Smith said it’s “easy to be a spectator, but Ms. Zito and her children chose something different. They chose compassion over convenience. They chose action over observation. They chose service to others over self-interest. Those choices matter,” he said.

While she initially downplayed their actions and did not want recognition, the family was “excited to be a part of it,” Zito said of the ceremony and tour of Station 2. Her dad shared the story of the fire department rescuing their family photos, and the great respect he has for first responders. The girls got to have a small ride in the bucket of Truck No. 3, which was at the scene of the July 1 fire.

Volunteering and public service runs in the family, and Zito, who currently works as a nurse for Simsbury Public Schools, noted that her dad volunteers to lead a sailing program and her sister, Bonnie Heiple, is an attorney who is the commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.

“It’s pretty well ingrained that we do things for others,” she said. “My niece is already saying she wants to be a firefighter or police officer,” Zito said of Kit.

“We’re also being a little more vigilant, talking to the girls about what to do,” Zito said.

The West Hartford Fire Department is currently hosting a teen fire academy camp program, and they’re actively trying “to engage kids early in life about the fire service, and about helping in a community,” said Priest. They will be talking about this unfortunate incident, but using it as an inspiring example of helping others and the community.

The fire remains under investigation by the the West Hartford Fire Marshal’s Office, West Hartford Police, and the Connecticut State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit (FEIU). “Fires of this magnitude, especially with injuries, can take a prolonged time,” said Priest.

Priest said patient confidentiality prevents the sharing of any information about the medical condition of the victim, “but we always send our well wishes and speedy recovery to those involved or affected by the incident.”

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