Quick-acting firefighters rescued an injured young girl after a three-alarm blaze tore through an apartment building in the Bronx that also left two other people seriously injured.
The blaze started shortly after noon and quickly engulfed the six-story building on Rochambeau Ave. between E. Gun Hill Rd. and E. 212th St. in Norwood.
“We had a fast-moving fire,” FDNY Bronx Borough Chief Commander Mike Woods said at a press conference Friday afternoon.
Firefighters “were immediately confronted with heavy fire condition on the third floor,” where the flames began, before quickly spreading to the fourth and fifth floors, Woods said.
Firefighters discovered the girl, who was suffering from severe smoke inhalation, on the fifth floor and brought her up to the roof as thick smoke billowing through the hallways initially blocked their exit.
“Originally, she took a lot of smoke in her apartment, and then we had to transfer her up to the roof until it became safe enough to remove her down through the building to EMS that was awaiting,” Woods said.
It took firefighters around two hours to bring the blaze under control.
Although the child and other two residents suffered serious injuries from smoke inhalation, they were reported to be in stable condition. Two other residents and one firefighter had minor injuries.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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