Winstedphoenix – Firefighters had to pull a man out of a chimney at a Connecticut park building after he got stuck trying to retrieve his dog from a locked bathroom.
The incident unfolded Sunday morning at Rockwell Park in Bristol when police responded to a burglary report. Park staff told officers someone was trapped inside the chimney. Firefighters arrived and rescued the man by dismantling parts of the chimney and building—causing an estimated $5,000 to $10,000 in damage, according to police.
The man, a Bristol resident, was uninjured but arrested. He now faces charges of burglary, trespassing, and criminal mischief. Authorities released him on bond, and he is scheduled to appear in court on July 7.
Attempts to contact him were unsuccessful. Publicly listed phone numbers were inactive, and online court records did not list an attorney.
He got stuck near the flue of Mrs. Rockwell’s Pavilion, a structure named after a park benefactor. Erica Benoit, the community engagement coordinator for Bristol Parks, Recreation, Youth and Community Services, explained that the new automatic door locks engage nightly at 10 p.m.
It’s unclear how the dog ended up locked in the bathroom or how long the man had been in the chimney. According to officials, the bathroom doors can still be opened from the inside after locking. The dog was found safe and unharmed.
“It is a bit of a crazy scenario,” Benoit said. “Our parks staff is working with the police department and the fire department to make sure that doesn’t happen again. If he had just contacted police in the first place, we might have been able to avoid the situation.”
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