Firefighters across Brooklyn spent the weekend racing from one emergency to the next, battling six separate fires that left eleven people injured between Friday night and Sunday morning.
The first blaze broke out shortly before 6 p.m. Friday at 301 Pennsylvania Ave. in East New York, where members of the 15th Division arrived to find heavy fire on the first floor and extension to the second. Engine Company 290 and Ladder Company 103 knocked back the flames, and the fire was declared under control at 6:45 p.m.
Just after 3 a.m. Saturday, the 57th Battalion encountered heavy fire at the Blew Smoke Cigar Lounge in Crown Heights. About 60 firefighters attacked the blaze with two hoselines. Seven people suffered minor injuries.
A few hours later, shortly after 10 a.m., companies were dispatched to 1233 Prospect Ave. in Windsor Terrace, where Engine Company 240 and Ladder Company 122 found fire in a third-floor apartment. Crews quickly brought it under control and no injuries were reported.
Around 4:10 p.m., Engine Company 239 and Ladder Company 131 responded to 68 Second St. in Gowanus and located a third-floor fire in a private dwelling. More than 60 firefighters used two hoselines to knock down the main body of fire. Farther east, Battalion 39 reported a fire just after 4:45 p.m. at 1158 Sutter Ave. in East New York. Firefighters used a hoseline to swiftly bring the blaze in the private home under control. No injuries were reported in either blaze.
The most complex operation came at about 8:15 p.m. Saturday, when members of the 57th Battalion responded to an odor of smoke at 464 Clinton Ave. in Clinton Hill. Engine Company 219 and Ladder Company 105 found a fire on the third floor that had traveled up the walls to the fourth through sixth floors and into the cockloft.
A second alarm was transmitted, and Division 11 ordered a third alarm on arrival due to multiple frozen hydrants. Firefighters dug out snow-covered hydrants as the fire spread, ultimately impacting 24 apartments, officials said. No injuries were reported.
The final fire unfolded just after 5 a.m. Sunday at 1407 Flatbush Ave., where companies found a first-floor apartment fire with residents trapped. Engine Company 255 and Tower Ladder 157 rescued the occupants, and four residents were taken to a hospital for evaluation. The blaze was brought under control at 5:40 a.m.
The FDNY Fire Marshals Office is investigating the cause and origin of all six fires.
