A Dozen Families Displaced After Fire At NYCHA Building In The Bronx
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A dozen families were displaced when a fire ripped through a NYCHA apartment building last night in the Bronx.
Flames broke out around 6:40 p.m. inside the building on Findlay Avenue in the Concourse section.
"The smoke was very intense in my apartment, and when I looked out the window, there was fire on the roof. So I called my friend, and her daughter lives on the third floor, and they're all in the center right now with no shoes, no nothing," witness Lorraine Aponte told CBS2. "The fire was really, really bad. Really bad. I'm just standing here to see. I hope everybody's OK."
"There's a neighbor, a lady that lives in this building, she was outside and she seen it, and she had somebody knock on everybody's door. I had to hurry up and put my clothes on, my daughter, everything," resident Ann Alarcon said. "Scary, but I'm thanking Jesus everybody came out safe and sound."
Nearly 150 firefighters responded to the three-alarm blaze. The whole building was evacuated while first responders called for back-up
"Had members pull all the ceilings in the interior and cut the roof, and we had three lines going to put out the fire and save the rest of the building," FDNY Chief Daniel O'Sullivan said.
"I have three different alarms in the apartment, and not one went off. So that tells us that the fire was above us," said resident Jesus Aponte.
Fortunately, no one was hurt, but approximately 30 adults and 22 children were forced out of their homes.
The Red Cross set them up in a hotel for the night. Some returned home this morning, but were not allowed back inside.
"They have us in a hotel over on the other side of the Bronx," said Aponte.
NYCHA workers could be seen cleaning up broken glass and charred debris outside the building Friday.
CBS2's Aundrea Cline-Thomas contacted the agency, but the it did not say if residents will be given new housing or detail plans to rebuild the damaged units.
So far, there's no word on what caused the fire.
