A Norwich man whose apartment was destroyed by fire three years ago testified Monday as the trial of accused arsonist Marwan Chankar got underway in New London Superior Court.

The state alleges Chankar, 37, was attempting to kill Henry Wickham, an occupant of a five-unit apartment at 143-145 Rockwell St. in Norwich, when he set fire to the building on July 9, 2011. Chankar, has pleaded not guilty to charges of first-degree arson, attempted murder and first-degree criminal mischief and opted for a jury trial.

As the trial got underway, Darrell Wommack, who lived in a second-floor apartment, testified that he was getting ready to watch the 10 p.m. news when he smelled something burning. He said he looked outside and could see fire glowing off the trees. He went onto his balcony and saw flames coming out of the back window and door of the apartment next door. The occupant of that apartment, Anthony Thomas, had moved out a couple of days earlier.

Wommack testified that he screamed for his roommate to get out of the apartment, pushed in the door of the burning apartment, in case somebody was in there, and ran up to the third floor, where Wickham was asleep in his apartment. Wommack said he pushed in the door and screamed to wake up Wickham, who jumped up and ran out of the building in his boxer shorts. Wommack said he followed Wickham out and waited for firefighters to arrive.

State trooper Wayne Oppenbrouw, a detective with the Fire & Explosion Unit, and Norwich Deputy Fire Marshal Jacob Manke testified about the investigation that determined the fire had been intentionally set in the vacant apartment. Manke said he observed irregular burn patterns on the kitchen floor, and his K-9, Baxter, alerted him to the presence of an accelerant in the kitchen and in the center of the living room.

Norwich police allege Chankar used charcoal lighter fluid to start the fire in the vacant unit, where he had been squatting after being kicked out of Wickham’s apartment. They said the fire caused more than $400,000 in damage and displaced about 10 residents. Five of the city’s fire departments responded to the large blaze and two firefighters suffered minor injuries.

Chankar is already serving a 58-month prison sentence for serving as the getaway driver in two bank robberies. In taking his arson case to trial, he rejected an offer from prosecutor David J. Smith to plead guilty in exchange for a 10-year prison sentence. He is represented by attorney Theodore Koch.

Judge Barbara Bailey Jongbloed is presiding at the trial, which resumes today.

k.florin@theday.com

Twitter: @KFLORIN