Shehabuddin Kisslu: A fire next to an apartment building killed and one person was critically injured in Sunnyside ,Queens.
Fire officials said, the blaze started on Monday early morning on the building’s second floor before spreading to the third floor.
Two residents were found on the second floor. A 61-year-old man was pronounced dead while a 60-year-old man was transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition.
A firefighter also suffered injuries while battling the fire and was taken to an area hospital for treatment.
Residents of the building described the frightening conditions as smoke filled the building. Mahtab Alam, a resident said the fire was coming from the unit right below him.
“I get out of bed and I see smoke coming into our apartment. It’s coming from underneath so I woke up my wife and run out… it was pretty scary stuff,” Mahtab Alam said.
It took almost 80 fire and EMS personnel to get under control.
The fire broke out shortly before 2:40 a.m. inside a five-story apartment building on 40th Street in Sunnyside.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation and the victim’s identity has not yet been released.
