New York City’s worst fire disaster in more than 30 years killed nine children and ten adults, and left dozens more critically injured on Sunday.
The five-alarm blaze erupted shortly before 11 am on the third floor of a 19-story building at 333 East 181st Street in the Bronx.
‘Numerous’ fatalities are anticipated, FDNY commissioner Dan Nigro said in a press conference.
‘We didn’t know what to do. We looked out the windows and saw all the dead bodies they were taking with the blankets,’ Cristal Diaz, who lives in the fifth floor of the building, told the New York Post.
Diaz’s niece, 13-year-old Alanny, reportedly saw ‘moms fainting at the sight of their kids dying.’
The fire at the Twin Parks North West complex quickly progressed. At the scene, firefighters could be seen pulling desperate victims out of windows.
A hazardous material team was requested to retrieve a lithium ion battery, but it is unclear whether the fire was caused by the battery or was damaged by the fire, officials said. Fire Marshalls are investigating.
More than 200 firefighters across the borough responded to the scene. The FDNY said icy conditions made it difficult for firefighters to put out the blaze. At least 63 people were injured, the FDNY said.
‘The impact of this fire is going to really bring a level of pain and despair in this city,’ Adams said during a press conference. ”The numbers are horrific. We have over 32 people who are life-threatening at this time. This is going to be one of the worst fires we have witnessed in the City of New York in modern times.’
Firefighters stand in front of the apartment building at 333 East 181st Street in the Bronx
The five-alarm blaze erupted shortly before 11 am on the third floor of a 17-story building at 333 East 181st St in Fordham Heights
The scene at the fire in the Bronx, which authorities are calling the ‘worst in 30 years’ in New York City
Emergency personnel from the FDNY provide medical aid as they respond to an apartment building fire in the Bronx borough of New York
Firefighters rescue victims from the fire in the Bronx on Sunday
The five-alarm blaze erupted shortly before 11 am on the third floor of a 19-story building at 333 East 181st Street
Firefighters at the scene of the fire in the Bronx. More than 200 firefighters responded to the emergency
Fire Commissioner Dan Nigro briefs the press on the horrific fire
It took 200 firefighters an hour to put out the blaze due to the icy conditions
Firefighters aid a victim at the scene of the massive fire in Fordham Heights
Nineteen were treated at the scene and 35 others have beed taken to nearby hospitals, many of whom are in serious conditions, officials said.
NYC mayor Eric Adams and Nigro are at the scene evaluating the situation.
Nigro said during a press conference that a door to the apartment was opened, leading to the spread of the fire.
‘The smoke conditions in this building are unprecedented,’ Nigro said. ‘This smoke extended the entire height of the building, completely unusual,’ he said. ‘Members found victims on every floor in stairwells.’
Nigro said many of the victims suffered smoke inhalation and that he fears there may be numerous fatalities.
The death toll of Sunday’s fire is set to become the worst in 30 years for New York City, second only to the Happy land club fire in 1990, in which 87 people died after an arsonist used $1 million worth of gasoline to set the club on fire.
Stefan Ringel, a senior adviser to mayor Eric Adams, confirmed the death toll on Sunday to the Associated Press, while a city official, who was not authorised to speak publicly, confirmed the number of children dead.
News photographers at the scene captured images of firefighters entering the upper floors of the burning building on a ladder, multiple limp children being given oxygen after being carried from the building and evacuees with their faces covered in soot.
Sunday’s blaze came just days after a Philadelphia house fire killed 12 people, including eight children, was the deadliest fire at a US residential apartment building since 2017 when 13 people died in an apartment in the Bronx, according to data from the National Fire Protection Association.
That fire started after a three-year-old boy was playing with stove burners.
The deadliest fire prior to that was in 1989 when a Tennessee apartment building fire claimed the lives of 16 people.
Firefighters work at the scene of a fatal fire at an apartment building in the Bronx on Sunday
Emergency personnel from the FDNY respond to an apartment building fire in the Bronx
Emergency personnel from the FDNY provide medical aid as they respond to the fire
Firefighters work outside an apartment building after a fire in the Bronx
The five-alarm blaze erupted shortly before 11 am on the third floor of the 19-story building
‘The smoke conditions in this building are unprecedented,’ Fire Commissioner Dan Nigro said
The commissioner added that the apartment where the fire originated had its door opened, allowing for the blaze to spread throughout the building
The commissioner added that the apartment where the fire originated had its door opened, allowing for the blaze to spread throughout the building.
‘This is a horrific, horrific, painful moment for the City of New York,’ Adams said.
Diaz said she fled her apartment upon learning about the fire.
‘I was drinking coffee in the living room and I started smelling smoke. We started putting water on towels and the bottom of the door. Everything was crazy,’ Diaz told the Post.
‘We saw a bunch of bodies coming out. People from my childhood were dying,’ her niece, Alanny added.
Twitter user Hennessy Castillo recounted on the platform her escape from the blaze.
‘I was there, I made It out safely, but I could barely breath, I have asthma and I am very happy that I made it out safely, but I don’t know what started the fire, all I know is that I heard a lot of people screaming for help, some windows were broken but some people were fainted,’ Castillo tweeted.
Emergency first responders remain at the scene after an intense fire at a 19-story residential building
The Bronx 5-alarm fire left 19 dead and numerous serious injuries
‘This is a horrific, horrific, painful moment for the City of New York,’ Mayor Eric Adams said
NEW YORK CITY’S DEADLIEST FIRE DISASTERS
At least 19 people died on Sunday when a five-alarm fire erupted in a 19-story building in the Bronx.
Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro and Mayor Eric Adams described the fire as ‘NYC’s worst in 30 decades. ‘The impact of this fire is going to really bring a level of pain and despair in this city,’ Adams said.
We’re taking a look at some of the worst fire disasters in the recent history of the Big Apple.
December 28, 2017/ Belmont– A fire in the Belmont apartment of the Bronx killed 13 people and injured 14 others. At the time it became New York City’s deadliest fire in 25 years. It erupted when a 3-year-old played with the burners of the fire stove on the first floor of the building. As the mother desperately removed her children from the apartment, she accidentally left the door open, allowing the fire to spread.
March 7, 2007/Highbridge – The fire was started by a space heater’s electrical cord. it killed nine children and one adult. The building owner lost his five children. Another man lost his wife and four children.
April 23, 2017/ Queens Village – The fire at 112-16 208th St in Queens Village killed five people, including four children. A person driving by spotted the flames and alerted police. The fire was raised to three alarms before being stopped.
October 4, 2015/Borough Park – An intentional building explosion and fire in Brooklyn left two dead and eight injured after a tenant who was late on rent poured gasoline in the stairwell of the three-story building.
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