6 injured, over a dozen affected by Bronx house fire
NEW YORK -- A fire in a home in the Bronx left residents scrambling to get out Tuesday.
Fire officials say six people, including two firefighters, were injured. It happened around 7 p.m. on Summit Avenue near 161st Street in Highbridge.
On the second day of the new year, over a dozen people are out of their home after a fast-moving fire ripped through a three-story house and affected a neighboring home, as well.
"They were knocking on our doors, banging on our doors. 'Get out, get out, get out,'" Miriam Garcia said.
Garcia was home in her building next door when she heard the commotion and evacuated.
"The smoke was starting to come into the building," she said.
When Garcia ran outside, she pulled out her cell phone to record the "sky-high flames." Then, she saw a man desperate for help.
"There was a young man on the roof screaming, 'Help me, help me, help me,'" she said.
Witnesses say the man was able to climb off with help from an FDNY ladder as firefighters doused the structures, getting control of that fire.
"When we have three floors of fire on arrival, that always makes it suspicious, and that's why we call our fire marshals," FDNY Assistant Chief Michael Meyers said.
Officials say about 15 people between the two homes were rescued. Six of them, including two firefighters, were taken to local hospitals with minor injuries.
Garcia was able to get back into her apartment, but she was shaken.
"I was thinking, God, 2024, this is how we're going to begin?" she said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.