FDNY: 1 dead, 3 injured in fire in Brownsville, Brooklyn
NEW YORK -- One person was killed and three others were injured in a fire in a residential building on Rockaway Parkway in Brownsville, Brooklyn, on Monday afternoon.
Broken glass and debris littered the ground and the smell of burning lingered in the air.
Charred remains were left in the sixth-floor apartment, where the fast-moving fire ripped through.
"I was in the bathroom and my dog brought it to my attention," Mark Silva said.
Silva, who lives next door, said he's lucky he listened to his dog's barks.
"When I finally opened the door I saw a bunch of smoke," Silva said.
That thick black smoke engulfed the top floor just after 2 p.m.
"I started seeing smoke and flames," tenant Dy'sylvia Ponder said.
They were so intense, a man felt he had no choice and tried to escape out of a window. It was a horrifying sight for Ponder.
"When I looked up I saw a man drop and hit the grass hard," she said.
Fire officials said a 49-year-old man lost his life, though it's not clear who.
"This is a tragedy, a tragedy for the person who lived here," building owner Isaac Hager said.
Hager has owned the building for nearly 20 years. He said that sixth-floor apartment was rented out to a nonprofit that helps New Yorkers in need find homes. He said he was heartbroken standing in it.
"I'm going to try to close the roof tonight because it's going to rain, and put baseboard on the windows," Hager said.
However, he and his tenants said they are thankful the fire didn't spread to other units.
"Physically, I'm okay, but emotionally, I'm a wreck," Silva said. "I'm grateful that I'm alive and I get to see another day."
The power was on in the building on Monday night and most of the tenants were able to remain in their apartments, even on the sixth floor. The cause, fire officials said, is still under investigation.