Video Producer: Naman Shah
Video Editor: Sandeep Suman
At least 19 people, including nine children, are confirmed dead after a fire blazed through a high-rise apartment building in New York City on Sunday, 9 January.
Speaking to CNN, Mayor Eric Adams indicated that the blaze was "going to be one of the worst fires in our history," and added that 63 people were reported wounded in the incident.
"We've lost 19 of our neighbors today. It's a tragedy beyond measure. Join me in praying for those we lost, especially the nine innocent young lives that were cut short," Adams tweeted several hours after the incident.
The fire broke out on late on Sunday morning on the second and third floors of a 19-story building at East 181st street in the Bronx, AP reported.
At least 200 firefighting personnel were deployed to respond to the accident, which was caused by a malfunctioning space heater.
"The door to that apartment (where the fire began), unfortunately, when the residents left, was left open," Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro stated, adding that the open doors allowed thick smoke to escape and spread throughout the building, New York Times reported.
Officials reportedly fear a rising death toll. Speaking to reporters, Nigro indicated that victims were 'found on every floor, in stairwells.'
'Buildings Like This Don't Have Fire Escapes'
The Fire Department Commissioner also iterated that 'buildings like this one don't have fire escapes,' AP reported.
The injured, most of which were reportedly under cardiac and respiratory distress due to severe smoke inhalation, have been taken to five hospitals across the Bronx.
"The last time we had a loss of life that may be this horrific was a fire which was over 30 years ago, also here in the Bronx," Nigro stated, AP reported.
(With inputs from The New York Times and AP.)
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