Firefighters spent three hours working to contain a three-alarm fire that caused a building to collapse and left two others badly damaged at 920, 922 and 924 Lafayette Ave. in Bedford-Stuyvesant on Wednesday afternoon, officials said.
The Fire Department began receiving multiple calls for the fire just after 1:30 p.m. Engine Company 214 and Tower Ladder 111 arrived to find heavy fire on the first, second and third floors of a three-story wood-frame non-fireproof multiple dwelling.
“Due to the heavy fire conditions on arrival, we were forced to take a defensive stance a little after arrival,” FDNY Deputy Assistant Chief Joe Duggan said during a press conference. The main fire building in the middle collapsed early on into the operation.
Roughly 150 firefighters responded to the scene. Members used five hoselines and three tower ladders from the exterior to knock down the main body of fires. Searches were delayed due to the extensive damage of the main fire building.
The fire left three firefighters with minor injuries.
“This fire spread so quickly, it was shocking,” said Rebecca Clark-Stewart. “I thought it was going to catch more buildings on fire.”
Another nearby resident said the street was “blanketed with smoke.”
“I walked around the block to get to where I had to go,” they said. “I will pray for the family.”
The Department of Buildings and Fire Marshals are currently investigating the structural stability and cause. The fire was placed under control at 4:45 p.m. Units rotated throughout the late afternoon and into the evening to make sure the fire was fully contained.
