Six people have died after a large fire swept through a residential building in Brooklyn early on Thursday morning, in one of the deadliest house fires New York City has seen in recent years.
The blaze broke out in a two-storey home in the Sunset Park neighbourhood, on 58th Street, shortly before 2 a.m. local time. By the time firefighters arrived, flames were already spreading quickly through the building, and crews worked for about three hours to bring the fire under control.
Four people were pronounced dead at the scene. A man and a woman were taken to hospital in critical condition and later died there, bringing the death toll to six. All six victims were adults. Their names and ages had not been released by Thursday morning, as officials worked to contact their families.
Six other civilians were injured, two of them critically, and three firefighters were hurt while tackling the blaze. The scale of the loss, and the speed with which the fire took hold, has left neighbours and city officials in shock.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he was heartbroken by the deaths. Speaking on Thursday morning, he described the fire as a devastating tragedy and praised the firefighters and emergency medical workers who rushed to the scene in the middle of the night.
A fire reported in the early hours
The first report of the fire came in at about 1:40 a.m. local time, which is 6:40 a.m. GMT. The call sent a large emergency response to 58th Street in Sunset Park, a largely residential neighbourhood in south-west Brooklyn, about five miles from Manhattan.
More than 230 fire and emergency medical personnel were sent to the address, along with dozens of fire engines and support vehicles. The fire was classed as a three-alarm blaze, a designation that brings in extra crews and equipment beyond the initial response because of the scale of the incident.
Footage from the scene showed flames coming from several windows of the row-style building as firefighters aimed hoses at the upper floors. Crews rescued four people from the building, according to the New York Police Department, while others were helped out by neighbours and emergency workers before the flames spread further.
The fire was brought under control at just before 4:30 a.m., roughly three hours after it was first reported. By then, much of the two-storey home had been badly damaged, and fire marshals had begun the slow work of examining what remained.
City officials said eight residents were displaced by the fire, losing their home in the early hours of the morning. Support services were being arranged for those left without somewhere to stay.
A hazardous materials crew at the scene
A hazardous materials crew was sent to the property as part of the response, and fire marshals have opened an investigation into how the blaze started. The cause has not yet been determined, and officials have been careful not to speculate while that work continues.
Investigators found two lithium-ion batteries at the scene, and they are examining whether the batteries played any role in the fire. The batteries were discovered during the early stages of the investigation, and fire officials have stressed that it is not yet known whether they were connected to the outbreak of the fire.
Lithium-ion batteries, which power e-bikes, e-scooters and many other devices, have been linked to a series of serious fires in New York City in recent years. City fire officials have repeatedly warned residents about the risks of damaged or uncertified batteries, and about charging them indoors or overnight. The investigation into the Sunset Park fire will look at the batteries alongside other possible causes, but officials have said it is too early to draw conclusions.
The first deputy commissioner of the New York City Fire Department, Daniel Flynn, described the blaze as a terrible tragedy and urged all New Yorkers to have a fire safety plan in place. He said fire marshals were working to establish the cause and origin of the fire, and that more information would be shared when it was confirmed.
For readers in the United States, the incident is a reminder of how quickly a fire in a family home can turn deadly, and of the fire safety guidance published by federal emergency officials. Advice on home fire safety from the US Fire Administration covers working smoke alarms, escape plans and the safe use of lithium-ion batteries.
A neighbourhood in mourning
Sunset Park is a dense, mixed neighbourhood of row houses, apartment buildings and small businesses, home to a large immigrant community. The street where the fire broke out, 58th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues, is lined with two-storey family homes of the kind that burned on Thursday.
Brick residential homes on a street in Brooklyn, New York
Residential streets in Brooklyn, where the fire broke out in the Sunset Park neighbourhood. This photograph shows a different street and is used for illustration only.
Neighbours described waking to sirens and the smell of smoke in the early hours, and watching from the street as firefighters worked through the night. The loss of six lives in a single home has shaken a community where many families live close together and know each other well.
The mayor, who appeared on television on Thursday morning, said the city was tracking the fire and its consequences, and that the thoughts of New Yorkers were with the families of those who died. He thanked the Fire Department for its response and said the city would support the survivors and the displaced residents in the days ahead.
Fatal residential fires of this scale are rare in New York City, but they are not unknown. Fire officials say most deaths in home fires are caused by smoke inhalation rather than burns, and that working smoke alarms and a clear escape route can make the difference between life and death. The Fire Department runs regular public education campaigns on smoke alarm safety and on battery safety, including advice on buying certified batteries and never charging them near an exit.
What happens next
The investigation into the fire is continuing. Fire marshals will examine the damaged building, interview survivors and witnesses, and test items recovered from the scene, including the lithium-ion batteries. That process can take days or longer, and officials have said they will not confirm a cause until the evidence supports one.
The identities of the six people who died are expected to be released once their families have been notified. Hospital officials have not given an update on the condition of the two civilians who were critically injured, or on the firefighters who were hurt.
The Fire Department of New York will also review the response to the fire, as it does after any major incident. The three-alarm response brought more than 230 personnel to a single address, a measure of how serious the blaze was judged to be when the first crews arrived. The incident was first reported in detail by the BBC and by USA Today, which confirmed that the blaze was brought under control at just before 4:30 a.m.
Readers can find more of our reporting on firefighters and the risks they face, and on emergency responses to disasters, in our News section.
For now, the street remains the focus of an active investigation, and the neighbourhood is coming to terms with the loss. Six people went to bed on Wednesday night in a home on 58th Street and did not survive the night. The city will want answers about how the fire started, but for the families involved, the immediate need is support, shelter and time to grieve.
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