2 Fatal Fires, Same Address, Weeks Apart Not Criminal, Not Related: FD

BRANFORD, CT —The first fatal North Ivy Street fire was Dec. 26, 2024. A little over three weeks later, on Jan. 20, the second fatal fire at 155 N. Ivy St., was reported. In both cases, two men in their 60s died.

Monday, the Branford Fire Department posted to Facebook that while "Both incidents remain under investigation at this time, there does not appear to be any criminal aspect, and the two incidents are not related."

Steven Baird, 69, of Branford, was killed in the December fire in what officials described as a shed or barn. In the January fire, Richard Levchuk, 61, of Branford, was found dead after the January blaze inside a complex unit was extinguished.

Read more from Patch here >> ID Released In Fatal Barn Fire In Branford, Investigation Continues, Fatal Fire In N. Ivy Complex, 2nd Since Late December