A two-alarm house fire in Bushwick left 15 people injured on Tuesday night.
The raging fire broke out at a multi-family home at 126 Covert St. at around 11:22 p.m, according to the FDNY. Firefighters from Squad Company 252 and Ladder Company 176 arrived on the scene just under three minutes after receiving the call and discovered the back of the second floor of the building engulfed in flames.
Many of the building’s residents were rescued by firefighters, who helped them climb out of the second floor and down to the ground using ladders.
“They ran with a baby and several small children to awaiting paramedics,” one witness said at the scene.
The injured residents were transported by ambulance to local hospitals in stable condition. According to News12 Brooklyn, the families who lived in the home have been displaced, and four of them are receiving assistance from the Red Cross.
More than 100 firefighters battled the blaze, and were able to bring it under control by 12:27 p.m.
The FDNY requested a Department of Buildings inspection of the property, and the DOB placed a full vacate order on the home due to structural instability from the fire. According to DOB records, the first and second floors and the basement of the building suffered “severe fire, water, and smoke damage,” and many of the windows were removed, leaving the interior of the building exposed to the elements.
Previous complaints filed with the DOB state that the basement of 126 Covert St. had been illegally converted into an apartment, and DOB records show that inspectors were repeatedly unable to gain access to the building. The building also has 24 open violations from the city’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development, records show — with issues ranging from a leaking roof to damaged vinyl siding and peeling lead paint.
The FDNY fire marshal’s office will determine the cause and origin of the fire.
