Firefighters are battling a four-alarm fire at a warehouse in Brooklyn this morning. Update 10:45 a.m.: The fire is now a five-alarm fire. Update 12:23 p.m.: The FDNY just called a sixth alarm. Update 2:49 p.m.: The fire is now 7 alarms.
According to the FDNY, they got a call at 6:28 a.m. about a fire at 5 North 11th Street (at Kent Avenue). The address is for CitiStorage, a record storage facility.
A five-alarm fire means that there are 20 engine trucks and 11 ladder trucks, plus 6 battalion chiefs, a rescue team and many others on the scene. FDNY has fireboats on the scene, too.
Click for bigger image—photograph by Sheldon Chow
Notify NYC warns, "Emergency personnel are on the scene of a four alarm fire located at North 11th Street and Kent Avenue in Brooklyn. Expect traffic delays and a presence of emergency personnel and vehicles in the vicinity. Residents in northern Brooklyn, Manhattan, northwestern Queens, and southern Bronx may see or smell smoke."
#FDNY in action #williamsburg #fire pic.twitter.com/lMZyrjD5gF
— Peter Cheng (@Playmaka34) January 31, 2015
NYFD boat 2 now really getting into it with huge hose action. Smoke is INSANE and MASSIVE. #williamsburg #fire pic.twitter.com/c8TFogLXw9
— Michael Moshan (@R_EstateAttyNYC) January 31, 2015
Massive smoke and fire. @nycgov @NYTMetro #nyc #fire #brooklyn #williamsburg pic.twitter.com/U4NpNihASb
— Christophe (@menblowsmoke) January 31, 2015
Major Fire happening right now (7:07am) in what looks like Williamsburg Brooklyn. Flames visible from SoHo pic.twitter.com/TseVmhyCD5
— Casey Neistat (@CaseyNeistat) January 31, 2015
FDNY fighting the Williamsburg fire from the water (pic via my non-twitter in-law) pic.twitter.com/GYbIWEcN6z
— Slade Sohmer (@SladeHV) January 31, 2015
Massive fire in Williamsburg at Bayside Oil right now pic.twitter.com/pLvXsP5GLO
— Jeff Orlick (@JeffOrlick) January 31, 2015
I can't believe this fire... I, also, have always wondered what went on in that huge warehouse space. #williamsburg pic.twitter.com/BWuBLjCZtZ
— Liza de Guia (@SkeeterNYC) January 31, 2015
Now: Image from an FDNY fire boat FLIR camera, showing heat patterns in the 4-alarm fire in Brooklyn. pic.twitter.com/u4jaueeHmm
— FDNY (@FDNY) January 31, 2015
Huge warehouse fire in Williamsburg but I can smell from 2 miles away pic.twitter.com/DgWLxi6qcv
— JasonOates (@JasonOates) January 31, 2015
The Daily News reports, "The nearby Star Energy oil refinery was evacuated as a precaution, sources said."
GIF by Jackson Snellings/Brooklyn Research
Update 12:23 p.m.: The FDNY is still battling the fire, which is now at six alarms. This means there are four more engine trucks and two more ladder trucks on the scene (24 engine trucks and 13 ladder trucks).
One issue is the cold weather:
Hydrant at the 5-alarm warehouse fire in Brooklyn. FDNY dealing with high-winds & freezing temperatures. pic.twitter.com/iIF8SAZfgD
— FDNY (@FDNY) January 31, 2015
Just landed at LaGuardia. Here's the Brooklyn fire from the air. Smoke trails forever pic.twitter.com/NOjGjOWkZn
— Gary He (@garyhe) January 31, 2015
what in science explains this fireman's hat at the fire in williamsburg pic.twitter.com/9u2VqEXTfC
— Taylor J. Wofford (@taylorjwofford) January 31, 2015
The land that the warehouse is on was once valued at $100 million when the city wanted to acquire it for the Bushwick Inlet Park.
Update 2:49 p.m.: The fire is now at seven alarms—28 engine trucks and 15 ladder trucks are on the scene. The NY Times reports, "Firefighters were called for a small fire at the building around 4:30 a.m. and declared it under control. The larger fire was spotted about two hours later; it was not known if the two fires were related."
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