The FDNY says the Monday afternoon fire that claimed the lives of a man and two of his daughters was started by a five-year-old child playing with a lighter. A mattress caught fire in the Bushwick two-family home on Putnam Avenue—according to the NY Times, "Some of the building’s residents tried to put the fire out before calling 911 by dragging the burning mattress to a lower floor." more ›

Yesterday, a fast-moving fire in a Brooklyn home claimed the lives of a 62-year-old man and his two daughters, 14 and 3. The blaze, which started around 5:30 p.m. on Putnam Avenue in Bushwick, is considered suspicious and WABC 7 reports, "Investigators believe it may have been started by kids playing with matches in a stairwell. Investigators are unsure if it was set intentionally or if it was just horseplay that spiraled out of control." more ›

A fire broke out at a building in Harlem early yesterday morning, leaving four people, including two children, in critical condition. The fire is believed to have been started when a still-lit match ignited bedding in a second-floor apartment. And there were no smoke detectors in either the apartment where it started or the fourth-floor apartment where the four victims were found unconscious. more ›

Yesterday, the FDNY said that the Chelsea apartment fire that claimed five lives was likely caused by a child playing with matches or a lighter. Fire officials apparently found remnants of matches or a lighter in the kitchen, "where papers atop it fueled the blaze," according to the Post. Neighbors also said one of the children "played with fire in the past." But Leonel Balbeuna, brother of the mother who died alongside her husband and three children, said, "There's no way they played with matches. If they say it was matches, they need real proof." Tenants of the building, owned by the NYC Housing Authority, are holding an emergency fire meeting, about the building's firetrap conditions--there are no fire escapes, the window guards are difficult to remove, and the layouts are tricky. more ›

Fire officials said that the fire on West 18th Street that took the lives of five family members was caused by a "juvenile playing with a lighter or matches." The lone survivor, a 10-year-old boy, is in "dire condition," according to the Post. Fire officials have also been urging New Yorkers to check their smoke detectors and make sure they have batteries and are working (landlords are required to install them in apartment buildings, but tenants must maintain them)--as smoke detectors were disabled in both the apartments of the Chelsea fire and the fatal Bushwick fire. Also, develop an escape plan in case of a fire. more ›