At least 14 firefighters are among 16 injured after a fire destroys two homes in QueensNew York authorities reported.
b on 93rd Street, between Astoria Boulevard and 30th Avenue, in Jackson Heights, Fire Department of New York (FDNY) Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said at a press conference. In addition, The specific place where the fire originated is being investigated, but witnesses say it appears to have started in a patio.
In this case, the wind fanned the flames towards two homes and created a situation so critical that fire officials had to get to safety from the incident, added the head of the department, John Esposito. Some of the firefighters were trapped in the flames, forcing them to deploy an emergency rescue cord.
According to Bonsignore, The flames spread “so quickly” that the fire soon became a four-alarm incident, sending about 230 firefighters and paramedics to the scene..
Yesenia Pifferrer’s house caught fire and she claimed that her teenage son, who has autism and does not speak, is the family hero. He said he saw the fire through the window before anyone else and warned them, giving them the opportunity to get out before the fire reached their house.
“My son was pointing back between the houses, and when I looked, I saw flames, and at that moment I ran away. I told my husband, ‘We have to get out, there’s a fire.’ So I put the leashes on all my dogs, we ran away. My husband grabbed the cats, and then we all yelled for us to get out,” Pifferrer said.
“The flames had already engulfed everything. They engulfed this house, and the other, and were spreading to the garage. The neighbors began to use their hoses to try to contain the fire,” said another neighbor, Patricia Díaz.
The resident assures that The performance of the firefighters was surprising given the wind conditions. They even had to intervene in the face of a collapseABC 7 Novel York reported.
“The fire spread very, very quickly and became a very serious situation for us, forcing our members to flee for their lives with very little time to think,” Bonsignore explained.
Three of the firefighters suffered serious injuries. The others, including two civilians, suffered minor injuries.
All the inhabitants of the houses were unharmed, as were many pets.
In this sense, FDNY is investigating the cause of the four-alarm fire, fanned by the wind, but the department said at the time that there was nothing suspicious about it.
Besides, It was announced that two buildings suffered “significant” damage and a third suffered minor damage.. A garage located at the back of the building was also destroyed, authorities reported.
Keep reading:
• Catholic Charities Responds to Deadly Bronx Fire
• Husband died when he purposely blew up his family’s home in Queens, New York; injured police captured it on video
• Voracious fire damaged historic church in Queens and left several firefighters injured