Fire in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, leaves six dead and nine injured

Six people died and nine were injured in a three-alarm fire that swept through a two-story house in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn early Thursday morning, New York authorities said.

The fire was reported shortly before 2:00 a.m. at a home on the 600 block of 58th Street, according to the New York City Fire Department (FDNY). Crews arrived in under four minutes and found heavy fire in the basement and on both floors. More than 200 firefighters and emergency personnel, with 74 units, worked at the scene and brought the blaze under control at about 4:30 a.m.

Four residents were pronounced dead at the scene and two others died after being taken to nearby hospitals. All six victims were adults, and their identities had not been released as of Thursday morning, authorities said. Firefighters rescued four people from the building, two of them trapped behind window bars, according to FDNY Chief of Operations Kevin Woods.

Four other civilians were injured, and three firefighters and two police officers were hurt, with injuries that were not life-threatening, the FDNY said. The fire also displaced eight residents of nearby buildings, whom the city rehoused in hotels, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said at a morning news conference. "This is an unimaginable loss, and we grieve alongside every loved one and neighbor," Mamdani said.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Firefighters found a lithium-ion battery at the scene, but authorities said it is not yet known whether it is related to the origin of the blaze, according to the Associated Press. The house was built in 1915, according to city property records.

Photo: New York Post

Source: USA Today