A fast moving fire sent residents fleeing from a four-story Bedford-Stuyvesant brownstone Monday morning, Aug. 23.
Firefighters arrived at 685 Jefferson Ave. just before 7 am to find four residents hanging from the home’s second floor windows, surrounded by heavy smoke and flames. The fire appeared to break out on the first floor of the dwelling, located between Stuyvesant Avenue and Malcom X Boulevard.
Responding units used ground ladders and firetruck apparatuses to rescue the building’s residents, one of whom was transported to Kings County Hospital in critical condition.
The first responders were also forced to shut the building’s gas to control the blaze. In all, smoke eaters from 25 units and 55 FDNY personnel used two hose lines to extinguish the inferno.
The fire was deemed under control at 7:45 am. The official cause is pending a full investigation by the fire marshal’s office.
