1 killed, 18 injured in Harlem building fire: FDNY
HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11) — One person was killed and 11 others were hospitalized after a fire broke out in a building in Harlem, officials said.
The fire started on the third floor of an apartment building at 2 St. Nicholas Place around 2:15 p.m., according to the FDNY.
In total, 18 people were injured in the fire, according to FDNY officials. Twelve of the 18 victims needed to be hospitalized, including five people who were in critical condition, authorities said. One of the five people in critical condition later died at the hospital, officials said.
Video obtained by PIX11 News showed firefighters using a rope to rappel down the building and rescue trapped people from windows.
“The fire was on the third floor and was blowing into the hallways, trapping people above. It was so dangerous that firefighters had to make three rope rescues, which is something very unusual for us to do at one fire,” FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer said.
NYPD Chief of Department John Hodgens said three firefighters performed the rope rescues to grab people trapped on the upper floors.
“We usually have one of these a year or two. This was three at one fire. A very heroic action. All of those people are unfortunately in critical condition, but they’re at the hospital,” Hodgens said.
One of the firefighters who performed a rope rescue is a probationary firefighter who has been on the job for less than a year, FDNY officials said.
“We always train like the real thing so that when the real thing happens, we know what we’re doing,” probationary firefighter Jason Lopez said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Finn Hoogensen is a digital journalist who has covered local news for more than five years. He has been with PIX11 News since 2022. See more of his work here.
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