1 dead, 4 injured after large fire in Manhattan apartment building, FDNY says
One man died and four others, including two firefighters, were hurt after a fire broke out in an Upper Manhattan apartment building early Monday morning, the FDNY said.
Firefighters responded just before 1:30 a.m. to Riverside Drive between West 143rd and 144th streets, where a blaze was reported on the third floor of the six-story building.
Within 20 minutes, it escalated to two alarms, with more than 140 fire and EMS personnel responding.
Flames and heavy smoke were seen shooting out of a window.
Firefighters sprayed water inside, while one used a pike pole to drag items out of the apartment and onto the ground outside. The FDNY said there was heavy clutter inside the apartment.
The FDNY said an 80-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene. A 52-year-old woman was transported to the hospital for smoke inhalation, and she is stable, firefighters said.
Another person had minor injuries but refused medical attention. Two firefighters were also transported to the hospital with minor injuries.
The city's Department of Buildings issued a full vacate order for the building that has 54 apartments.
The Red Cross said 44 people registered for emergency assistance.
A few residents from the fourth floor said they grabbed what they could and got out, some taking the stairs and others using the fire escape.
"I was very afraid. I thought we were all going to die," resident Kahn-Tanaz Hightower said. "Everything was black. We couldn't breathe, so we had to come back upstairs. We're banging on people's doors. Our hallway was just totally overwhelmed with black smoke. Overwhelmed."
The resident who was killed had lived in the building for decades, residents said.
"He was here before we moved here," Hightower said.
"I just remember smoke and then a few neighbors and I went down the stairs and got outside," a woman said.
"One of our neighbors slammed on our door and said it was a fire, and we grabbed Hudson, our dog, and ran down the stairs," another resident said.
The FDNY is still investigating to determine the cause of the fire.
"So heartbreaking," Hightower said, adding it's the only home his son has ever known.
