Huge blaze in Port Chester levels buildings, no injuries reported

Michael P. McKinney, Rockland/Westchester Journal News
Updated ·2 min read
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Port Chester firefighters battled a multi-alarm blaze on South Main Street on Monday, and people nearby were advised to stay away from the area.

Firefighters from numerous area departments battle a multi-alarm fire on South Main St. in Port Chester April 17, 2023. The fire started in 16 South Main Street and spread to 14 and 12. The structures were three-story vacant apartment buildings on top of businesses that the Port Chester Fire Chief said were vacant and scheduled for demolition.
Firefighters from numerous area departments battle a multi-alarm fire on South Main St. in Port Chester April 17, 2023. The fire started in 16 South Main Street and spread to 14 and 12. The structures were three-story vacant apartment buildings on top of businesses that the Port Chester Fire Chief said were vacant and scheduled for demolition.

No one was reported injured and no fatalities were reported as of early afternoon, village officials said at the scene.

“This fire event is extremely dangerous and has required emergency personnel to shut down multiple streets in the vicinity while our fire department tries to get this fire under control,” a post on the village's Facebook page warned in the morning.

Port Chester Fire Chief Angelo Sposta said the fire started in 16 S. Main St. and spread to 14 and 12. Sposta said they are three-story vacant apartment buildings on top of businesses that were vacant at the time of the fire.

Demolition had been scheduled for the buildings. A site design has been approved for a new 12-story development at the site, Village Manager Stuart Rabin said. The new development would be part of several that are rising or approved to be built in the transforming downtown of the village of nearly 32,000 residents on the border with Connecticut.

The fire's cause was not immediately known. But Sposta and Mayor Luis Marino each said none of the buildings were hooked up to gas or electricity.

Arriving firefighters at about 10 a.m. found heavy fire showing in multiple windows at 16. S. Main St. Firefighters were stationed on both Main Street and East Broadway.

Water became a challenge, Sposta said, as firefighters needed to get some from the Byram River and from a tanker "because we've hit so many hydrants."

Sposta expected firefighters to continue for hours more.

"We're going to be here all day," he said.

Fire personnel from Port Chester, Purchase, Greenwich, Thornwood, Tarrytown and others converged on the scene, along with ambulance from Scarsdale and Valhalla.

Firefighters from numerous area departments battle a multi-alarm fire on South Main St. in Port Chester April 17, 2023. The fire started in 16 South Main Street and spread to 14 and 12. The structures were three-story vacant apartment buildings on top of businesses that the Port Chester Fire Chief said were vacant and scheduled for demolition.
Firefighters from numerous area departments battle a multi-alarm fire on South Main St. in Port Chester April 17, 2023. The fire started in 16 South Main Street and spread to 14 and 12. The structures were three-story vacant apartment buildings on top of businesses that the Port Chester Fire Chief said were vacant and scheduled for demolition.

Video on social media from the scene showed multiple trucks' ladders raised and billowing smoke conditions sweeping through the area.

The Metro-North Railroad had scattered delays throughout the morning and afternoon on the New Haven line due to the fire. A series of MTA tweets indicated trains were bypassing the Port Chester, Rye and Greenwich stations Monday morning.

It appeared trains were running on schedule again later Monday.

Michael McKinney is a breaking news reporter for The Journal News, Poughkeepsie Journal and Times Herald-Record of Middletown. Seth Harrison contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Port Chester firefighters battling blaze in area of S. Main Street