Over 200 firefighters responded to a four-alarm fire that broke out in a multi-family home in the Van Nest section of the Bronx yesterday. Eighteen firefighters were injured, including two who were inside the building when it partially collapsed. One resident said, "The fire was so huge. It was spreading. I was crying, screaming."
The fire started around 1:15 p.m. 726 Van Nest Avenue. The fire quickly spread (the building is a wood-frame structure) and jumped to neighboring buildings. Assistant fire chief Ronald Spadafora told the Post, "It’s a real disaster now — four structures are damaged very severely," and he said of the situation, "The firefighters just missed getting hit by the floor above them, so they were inside the building with them. We also had firefighters from the rear of the building coming in that way, so we had a pretty good group of firefighters working in that area."
726 Van Nest will now be demolished. Witnesses said it looked like the wind helped the fire spread to the other buildings. The Post has more dramatic photos.
