Bronx fatal fire kills 85-year-old man, injures 9 other tenants
One person died and nine were injured in a massive New York City apartment fire overnight Friday, authorities said in the Bronx.
An 85-year-old man was pronounced dead and three people were hospitalized after the fire inside the building at the corner of Jesup Avenue and Sherif S. Byrd Place in the borough's Mount Eden section, according to police.
Fatal fire tears through Bronx apartment overnight
Everyone in the building was prompted to evacuate as the fire burned inside an apartment on the first floor, the New York City Fire Department said.
The fire was reported at around 9:30 p.m. Friday and FDNY firefighters remained on the scene until early Saturday morning. It took about two hours to get it under control, officials said.
Panicked tenants said they escaped massive flames and heavy smoke throughout the building.
"There was smoke everywhere and, as I was going downstairs it got progressively worse, each floor I got down to. And by the second floor, I couldn't see anything," one woman said. "When I tried to open my eyes, my eyes were burning, and I tried to scream because I was so scared. I tried to scream for my sister, my grandmother, and all I felt was my throat was burning. I felt my throat burning and I couldn't breathe."
Emanuel Ampofo lives in the apartment above where the fire broke out and says he heard the smoke alarms going off.
"After five minutes, the alarm was coming up, so I opened the door just to see and smoke was everywhere," he said.
He says he quickly threw on clothes and ran outside.
"I just had to run away, because the smoke was choking. I was choking," he said.
85-year-old man pronounced dead
Neighbors said the older man who died was a veteran.
"He's very sweet. He doesn't bother nobody. He does his own thing, he watches out for the neighborhood," Christina Woo, the man's neighbor, said. "He wasn't breathing and they were trying to resuscitate him."
At least one person remained hospitalized in critical condition. Two people, ages 45 and 70, were in stable condition at the hospital, officials said.
Inside the apartment where the fire started, walls and sections of the ceiling were gutted.
The American Red Cross was on the scene.
Six people were displaced and registered for emergency lodging and financial assistance, the nonprofit said Saturday. Other residents impacted by the fire were urged to call 1-877-RED CROSS (877-733-2767) and select Option 1 if they needed assistance after the fire.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The FDNY says cars were parked in front of the fire hydrant when they arrived at the scene. They said this didn't delay getting water on the fire, but they remind New Yorkers that blocking a fire hydrant is illegal.
