Brooklyn rabbi among 5 people hurt in kitchen fire above synagogue
NEW YORK -- Five people were hurt, two critically, when a fire broke out early Friday morning at an apartment above a synagogue in Brooklyn.
Firefighters responded around 6:15 a.m. to 60th Street between 18th and 19th avenues in Mapleton. Investigators say it was an accidental kitchen fire that started inside a second floor apartment.
"The building fire started on the second floor in the kitchen," FDNY Deputy Chief Gregg Hansson said on the scene. "Most of the fire was contained in the second kitchen area, got out into the hallway a little bit."
A rabbi and another resident from the second floor were hospitalized, along with three people from the third floor, who had to be rescued through a window with a ladder and bucket because thick smoke was blocking any other way out.
"They took three people out of the third floor with a bucket," Hansson said. "We had five overall patients."
Officials say the rabbi, his wife and their 17-year-old son climbed from the second floor to the third floor to check on other relatives living there. Heavy smoke forced the three over to a window, where they held on for their lives and called for help.
"We saw the rabbi, his wife and ... his son dangling out of that window up there, top window. The FDNY pulled up and were able to get them out safely," neighbor Joel Schlesinger said.
Neighbors brought fire survivors into their own homes.
"From 6:30 a.m., all the kids are in my house. They made sure they had food, clothing. My mother ran baths for the kids, everything. We have the best parents out there," neighbor Esther Dini Schlesinger said.
"People are acting like one big family. I'm really touched by it," family friend Yidel Perlstein said.
Neighbors said they know the family who lives there and believe they were up early cooking for a big gathering this weekend to celebrate a wedding.
"Terrible news out of Borough Park this morning. My office is in touch with the leadership at Stovnitz Synagogue," Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso posted on social media. "My heart is with the congregation, Rabbi Horowitz, and his family."
Most of the synagogue was spared by the fire, and the Torahs and other valuables were rescued and spared water and smoke damage.
While repairs are made, the family will stay in a vacant home donated by a good Samaritan, and services will be held at a nearby synagogue for the time being.