13 Firefighters Injured Battling Large Apartment Building Fire In Yonkers
YONKERS, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- More than a dozen firefighters were injured battling a huge fire in Yonkers that destroyed multiple homes on Sunday.
Flames and smoke could be seen coming out of the roof of a three-story building on Maple Street.
The fire department said it started at around 4 p.m., when a piece of furniture caught fire in the back of a home, officials said.
The flames spread to four buildings, making up a total of 32 apartments.
Investigators said one civilian and 13 firefighters were hurt.
"Everybody started running down the stairs, screaming, 'Get out! Get out! Get out!' Grab the dogs. Send the kids out, and we just got out safe," witness Maria Valentin said.
"Because of the severe heat of 90 degrees today, it's very labor intensive and we had a lot of problems with the heat," Deputy Chief Joseph Citrone said.
Fire officials said two of the four structures are complete losses.
Thankfully, all of the injuries are minor.
The cause of the blaze is being investigated.