Results tagged “fire”

As debate continues over whether a fire dispatcher's typo led to three deaths and four injuries in a Woodside, Queens home on Saturday, it turns out the basement apartments where the victims lived had been eyed by the Department of Buildings before. According to the Daily News, the two-family home "had been illegally converted into a five-family residence with another seven single rooms"—but when the DOB inspected it in 1990 and 2004, they found nothing wrong!

Firefighters responding to a deadly Woodside fire that killed three and injured four in an illegal basement apartment yesterday could have arrived sooner — had they not been routed to the wrong address first. A 911 operator mistakenly entered a two instead of a five and sent Engine Company 292 and Rescue Company 4 on a "wild goose chase" to 62nd Street instead of 65th Street, a delay that cost firefighters about 2 minutes and 30 seconds, according to the fire union.

A fire claimed the lives of three men and critically injured four others when it ripped through an illegal basement apartment this morning in Woodside, Queens. The blaze broke out in the two-story home's improperly partitioned basement at around 2:45 am, according to the Daily News. When firefighters arrived at the "chaotic scene," they discovered "badly-burned victims" on the "front sidewalk, just inside the front door and beneath a basement window." The surviving victims were taken to the New York Hospital-Cornell Burn Center. The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

Firefighters are investigating the cause of a blaze that killed a woman in an apartment at 250 West 104th Street yesterday before 6 p.m. The Post reports the woman's mother attempted to rescue her 48-year-old daughter but the daughter's bedroom was "mysteriously blockaded, according to neighbors who responded to the mom's cries for help." (NY1 says the door was blocked with suitcases.) The daughter died of smoke inhalation; more than 60 firefighters fought the fire.

In what must be the least surprising news item of the day, the law firm that was planning on hiring Brian Schroeder — the 26-year-old Harvard Law School grad suspected of setting a fire in a chapel containing the remains of unidentified victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks — has revoked its offer. The firm Sidley Austin recanted on its decision to hire Schroeder, who turned himself in to police after setting a blaze on Saturday morning that destroyed flowers, photos, and other mementos inside Memorial Park on the corner of First Avenue and East 30th Street. According to cops, he set the fire on a drunk dare, but Schroeder's attorney claims the Texas native, who moved to New York to accept the law job, had been drugged.

The Harvard Law School grad suspected of setting a fire inside a memorial for unidentified victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks claims he was drugged before he torched the shrine. A lawyer representing 26-year-old Brian Schroeder said someone might have "put something in his drink" before the 26-year-old Ivy Leaguer — who moved to New York to accept a job at a law firm — set a blaze that destroyed flowers, notes, photos, and other mementos inside Memorial Park at First Avenue and East 30th Street. In fact, the attorney claims that Schroeder didn't realize he was setting a fire in a 9/11 memorial, "although police sources said he made sure to gather many of the teddy bears left by victims' families to start the fire," according to the Post.

Owners of 14 businesses destroyed by a five-alarm fire on Saturday may get a hand from the city—the city's Department of Small Business Services emergency response unit has been meeting with them, according to the Daily News. The agency said, "Our team is helping these businesses obtain copies of permits/licenses consumed by the fire, expedite [Fire Department] reports required for insurance claims as well as connecting them to other N.Y.C. Business Solutions services."

Yesterday's five-alarm fire has devastated the owners of 14 businesses along Bainbridge Avenue in the Norwood section of the Bronx. Mahmoud Zaghari, whose brother's convenience store was ruined, told WCBS 2, "All our money was in this store, all our investment was in this store, and in two, three hours, nothing - that's it."

Firefighters have been fighting a 5-alarm fire at 3105 Bainbridge Avenue off East 204th Street in the Bronx. WCBS 2 reports, "Though firefighters arrived shortly after 3 a.m. to find only heavy smoke, it quickly turned into a conflagration. The fire could be seen for blocks, and smelled for miles."

The daughter of a 44-year-old construction-safety inspector who was killed in a suspicious Flushing apartment fire earlier this week is vowing to continue her mother’s fight in a sexual harassment lawsuit filed months before her death.

A 44-year-old mother of two died and three others were critically injured by a fire that tore through a Flushing apartment early Sunday morning. The deceased, Bianca Wisniewski, was due in federal court today for a hearing in her $20 million sexual-harassment lawsuit against Total Safety Consulting and JPMorgan Chase. Four of the 110 firefighters at the scene suffered minor injuries, and the fire was ultimately contained to the single apartment, because the cement and steel walls stopped it from spreading.

After a campaign to get 30 Rock star Tracy Morgan to join Twitter, he has finally joined—"His rep confirmed to Gossip Cop that he signed up this morning." His Twitter handle: RealTracyMorgan. First Tweet: "Welcome To Tracy Morgans World..." Aw, yeah—maybe now he can Twitter about his fish tanks (like imagine the Tweets he would have sent when they caught fire!) and whatever else pops into his mind.

The good folks at NY1 didn't have to think too hard when it came to their "New Yorker of The Week" this week. The honor went to Horia (Billy) Cretan, the electronics store owner who ran into a burning building in the Bronx to save a 4-year-old boy on Wednesday. Cretan recounted his time with the boy as he held him, saying, "I said, 'Stay there and just keep your head up and make sure you breathe. No matter what you do don't go nowhere, you are going to be fine.'" And as if there's any question this guy is basically the most admirable man in the galaxy right now, he settled it by quickly changing the subject from his rescue and saying, "I hope somebody will come forward to help these families that suffered damage." Cretan was also honored yesterday by Bronx Beep Ruben Diaz Jr.

Yay! Upon hearing screams from a Bronx building, a stranger ran up a fire escape, kicked in the window of a burning apartment and rescued a 4-year-old boy. Horia Cretan said, "I heard somebody scream, I didn't know what was happening outside. I looked up and just couldn't see nothing, there was too much smoke. I just kicked in--I kicked in gear. I put the ladder down, I went upstairs, I did the best I could."

The 8th annual Tunnel To Towers Run is being held today, even in spite of the rainy conditions. The 5K run/walk is in tribute to firefighter Stephen Siller: On September 11 2001, he decided to run through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, wearing 70 pounds of firefighting gear, to the World Trade Center and help; he died in the attacks. The race starts at the Gowanus approach to the BBT and enters Manhattan on West Street.

Investigators are still trying to figure out what caused a three-alarm fire in Springfield Gardens yesterday that tore through a corner bodega, a metal and glass company, and a car service business. [NY1]

A fire broke out at a warehouse, located at 27th Street and 50th Avenue, just before 6 a.m. and has grown into a three-alarm blaze. The smoke has been so heavy that all westbound Long Island Expressway lanes were shut down temporarily—they have since reopened but there are still delays near the Queens Midtown Tunnel. According to MyFoxNY, "NY Traffic Authority Ines Rosales recommends drivers in the area take the 59th Street Bridge or get off on Queens Boulevard and take the Queens Borough Bridge." And firefighters are still working to get the fire under control.

FDNY officials have confirmed that no one was injured in yesterday morning's spectacular taxi fire, but they have yet to determine the inferno's cause. According to the Post, a passenger was in the cab when it ignited around 9:30 a.m., while stopped at the corner of Seventh Avenue and 53rd Street. Apparently, the cabby pulled over at the light because his meter had stopped running, and both escaped the 2007 Ford Crown Victoria as it burst into flames.

The old 500-lb brass bell that was lost in the ocean during a massive Dreamland Park fire in 1911, just got a new lease on life. As previously mentioned, the bell was discovered underwater by diver Gene Ritter, who brought it back to land yesterday. The NY Post reports that "the divers used netting and inflatable 'lift bags' to lift the bell, which was later towed about four miles east to the Gateway Marina on Flatbush Avenue, where it was lifted ashore by a massive forklift as a crowd of about 100 people gathering to watch the historic moment cheered on." (ABC News has video.) The bell still sounds good, according to Ritter; it used to be rung when passengers would arrive by steamboat to the iron pier, and it will now be temporarily on display at the Coney Island History Project museum before finding a permanent home in the neighborhood. Ritter added, "We could easily put this on eBay and make $100,000, but our goal is to preserve history."

Back on May 27, 1911 Coney Island was doing worse off than it is today, with Dreamland Park in flames for a full 18 hours, burning to the ground and never again being rebuilt as it was. But a piece of the glory days was just found underwater; the NY Post reports that local divers are bringing up a piece of the past: a massive 500-lb bell that sunk to the ocean floor with the rest of the pier. Diver Gene Ritter told the paper, "I knew the bell existed, but I never dreamed I would find it. I thought it would be buried in mud. I was stunned, especially over the incredible shape the bell is in."

Yesterday morning, a fire broke out in an apartment building in the Fordham section of the Bronx, and when the firefighters responded, there was a car—with an "official NYPD placard issued to cops"— blocking the hydrant. The Post reports "frustrated firefighters had to rely on handheld fire extinguishers to put out the kitchen blaze." Four young children were treated for smoke inhalation at a local hospital—and a cat was given oxygen on the scene! While the FDNY said it wasn't clear whether the hydrant-blocking car was a cop's car, "another fire official at the scene told The Post it was an unmarked police vehicle." Still, a Post photographer who tried to snap a picture of the placard itself "was forced to move away by cops." The car was towed and moved to the 52nd Precinct, probably to keep from the angry neighbors egging it—they told the Post, "Why would you leave your car where people need to get water in case of an emergency?" and "If it was an off-duty cop, he should have known better."

Authorities investigating a fire in Central Islip yesterday discovered that the three bodies of adults were actually shot to death. Suffolk Count police also said that the fire was arson and a witness described, "The house was engulfed Every window, every doorway, flames were shooting out. There was no way you could have even attempted to get in there." Two children managed to survive the fire; Newsday reports, "Two children - a 6-year-old boy and a 2-year-old girl - were standing outside the burning home when firefighters arrived. They had been asleep in a built-in garage converted into a bedroom and were able to get out a side exit." Two of the victims were identified as Katrice Daniels, 31, and Luis Calixto, 19; the third victim was a female in her 20s (Calixto's mother suggested it could be her son's girlfriend). Brooklyn resident Kim Graves had been renting out the home, though she did not disclose who the renters were.

Last night, around 6:30 p.m., a firm that was reported at 875 Longwood Avenue in the Bronx. It soon became a three-alarm fire, as it overwhelmed a five-story apartment building. According to MyFoxNY, flames from the fourth floor shot to the fifth floor: "Then flames shot out from both floors, and suddenly two firefighters were trapped inside the building. They were trying to prevent the fire from spreading to the cockloft or airspace under the roof where it would spread tot the entire building." And WABC 7, which said, "flames [were] shooting through the windows like a blowtorch," reports that firefighters "ran hoselines up four flights of stairs only to be driven back by a fireball." All told, 19 firefighters suffered injuries while residents are being housed by the Red Cross. It's suspected that an overloaded electrical circuit in a fourth floor apartment is the cause of the fire.

A four-alarm fire at an apartment building on Third Avenue near 68th Street in Brooklyn's Bay Ridge section has left dozens of families homeless. The fire started before midnight in the first floor deli; WABC 7 reports, "Flames spread through all four floors, finally shooting through the roof in an inferno that lit up the night sky. Officials say dozens of residents were forced to flee, many with young children." And according to WCBS 2, "Fire officials say the fire ripped through all 15 apartment, causing significant damage... Deputy Fire Chief James Leonard says the heat and humidity, and a costly delayed call to 911, made for a difficult night fighting the flames." The Red Cross is assisting families with shelter. Additionally, a number of firefighters were injured and the FDNY will be investigating the blaze.

Earlier this month, a three-alarm fire shut down traffic on the Throgs Neck Bridge. (It turned out the fire was started by a construction worker's blow torch; the bridge has been undergoing a multi-year renovation project.) Though traffic has mostly reopened, there are still some closures on the roads and ramps and the MTA is set to discuss the immediate future for drivers on the crossing. Newsday reports that trucking groups are concerned that the bridge may restrict truck traffic: "Truckers favor the Throgs Neck because it allows for a heavier weight limit, unlike the neighboring Bronx-Whitestone Bridge. The Bronx-Whitestone Bridge has a 80,000-pound truck limit. With special permission, trucks can have a total weight of up to 105,000 pounds crossing the Throgs Neck." And with bigger loads, truckers make more money. However, a civil engineer explains that "bouncing, heavy rigs can make matters worse." The MTA is holding a webcast of the Throgs Neck Bridge plan press conference at 10:50 a.m.

Some concerned readers wrote in a little bit after 11 a.m. when a large fire appeared on the Manhattan Bridge. Turns out it's a tractor trailer fire, and the newswire reports that it's on the Brooklyn bound side and they're currently awaiting a structural engineer. More details as they come in, but the subways still seem to running over the bridge. Did you see the blaze? UPDATE: Around 12:15 p.m. the truck was being towed off the bridge, and structural evaluation is complete.

The Rosenwach Tank Company, which is almost the oldest manufacturer of wooden water tanks in America, was hit by a pretty severe fire on the evening of July 4th at their headquarters in Williamsburg, where they mill their cedar wood for New York's ubiquitous rooftop tanks. And according to local custom, everyone's blaming the hipsters. We stopped by the site on the morning after the two-alarm blaze and several women who reside nearby agreed that "young white guys" had been setting off fireworks near the Rosenwach property around 9 p.m.

Last night, a two-alarm fire broke out at a site at N. 9th and Wythe Avenue in Brooklyn, apparently at the Rosenwach Wood Tank Company. Smoke could be seen from not only neighboring buildings but from the East Village as well. The fire was reported at around 9 p.m. and under control by 10:15 p.m. We've contacted the FDNY for details on what might have caused the fire.

According to the Daily News, the worker who was seriously injured during a flash fire at a Columbia-Presbyterian building is "clinging to life." Manuel Culcay suffered burned on 85% of his body; he is in critical condition at Harlem Hospital (which has a burn unit), breathing with the help of a ventilator. On Friday, Culcay, who works for Yonkers-based Acid Waste Management, had been cleaning out a water tank when the vapors of the alcohol cleaning solution ignited when someone turned on a halogen lamp. One of the paramedics who tended to Culcay, Mark Caplan, told the News that he and his partner had just dropped off a patient at Columbia-Presbyterian, "We were done with our shift. I guess we were at the right place at the right time," and added that they were praying for him.

An employee at the Target in East New York is accused of conspiring with her boyfriend to set fire to the store as a diversion while they stole $8,000 worth of flat-screen televisions. And they would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for those meddling surveillance cameras! The FDNY says video depicts Jared Devonis, who was fired from Target two weeks ago, using a lighter to start a fire in the paper towel aisle.