A fire in an apartment building in New York’s The Bronx left 19 dead and dozens seriously injured. Nine children were among those killed, New York Mayor Eric Adams said. The fire is said to be under control by now. “This has to be one of the worst fires we’ve seen in current times,” the mayor said, speaking of a “true tragedy”.
The fire broke out around 11 a.m. local time on Sunday in a 19-story building that dates back to the early 1970s.
There were 19 fatalities, including 9 children. 63 people were also seriously injured, some of them in critical condition, Adams told CNN.
“This will be one of the worst fires we have seen in New York City in current times,” the mayor said. “This is a terribly, terribly painful moment for the city of New York and the impact of this fire will bring pain and despair.”
“Victims on almost every floor”
“Firefighters found the victims on almost every floor of the stairwell,” said Fire Chief Daniel Nigro. The vast majority of the fire victims had smoke inhalation. Many of them had suffered cardiac arrest or serious breathing problems.
The conflagration was fought by about two hundred firefighters, who had difficulty accessing the apartment complex without balconies.
According to some local media, at least one person who was fleeing the blaze jumped out of a window.
Open door
It is not clear what caused the fire. According to the fire service, the fire started just before 11 a.m. local time in a duplex apartment on the second and third floors. The apartment door was open, allowing smoke to quickly spread to every floor in the building, several US media outlets reported.
On Wednesday, at least 12 people, including eight children, were killed in a large fire at a terraced house in downtown Philadelphia.
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