Seventeen Killed, Dozens Injured in Five-Alarm Bronx Fire Started by Space Heater

Seventeen people were killed and dozens more were injured in a five-alarm apartment building fire started by a malfunctioning space heater Sunday morning in the Bronx, officials said.

Just before 11 a.m. that morning, firefighters located heavy smoke and fire in an apartment that spanned the second and third floor of the 19-story building located at 333 E 181st St in Tremont.

The door to the apartment was left open, and flames spread into the hallway. On Monday morning, Mayor Eric Adams [said](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/nyregion/bronx-fire-nyc/a-door-in-the-bronx-high-rise-may-have-malfunctioned-mayor-eric-adams-said) the door should have closed on its own, but its self-closing mechanisms may have malfunctioned.

Stairwell doors that were also open allowed the heavy smoke to reach "the entire height of the building," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

As many as 200 firefighters responded to the scene, and some ran out of oxygen in their tanks, officials said.

They located residents on every floor with injuries related to severe smoke inhalation, including respiratory and cardiac arrest.

Radio transmissions from the scene indicated at least 63 people were injured, with approximately 32 of those injuries being considered life-threatening.

Officials announced on Sunday that ten adults and nine children had been pronounced dead. Mayor Adams revised the number on Monday to include nine adults and eight children, for a total of 17 deaths.

During a preliminary investigation, fire marshals determined the blaze was started by a malfunctioning electric space heater in a bedroom of the two-story apartment.

The building, which reportedly did have the heat turned on, was not equipped with fire escapes, and Nigro said residents were likely unable to escape using internal stairwells due to the volume of smoke.

The buildings smoke alarms were triggered, Nigro said. Officials will investigate reports from residents that the smoke alarms went off frequently and erroneously, possibly causing a lack of urgency and confusion if there was an active fire in the building at all.

Governor Kathy Hochul said she plans to establish a victim’s compensation fund.

Mayor Adams and Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson both expressed their hopes to “turn our pain into purpose” by improving fire safety education.

Many of the building's residents were originally from Gambia, officials said. Gambian Ambassador Dawda D. Fadera traveled from Washington D.C. to support the community and express the country's grief in the Monday afternoon press conference.

A vigil will be held Tuesday, January 11th from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Angelo Patri School at 2190 Folin Street.

Officials noted it was the city's deadliest fire in decades. It occurred just days after a fire in a row home in Philadelphia left four adults and eight children dead.

Seventeen people were killed and dozens more were injured in a five-alarm apartment building fire started by a malfunctioning space heater Sunday morning in the Bronx, officials said.

Just before 11 a.m. that morning, firefighters located heavy smoke and fire in an apartment that spanned the second and third floor of the 19-story building located at 333 E 181st St in Tremont.

The door to the apartment was left open, and flames spread into the hallway. On Monday morning, Mayor Eric Adams [said](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/nyregion/bronx-fire-nyc/a-door-in-the-bronx-high-rise-may-have-malfunctioned-mayor-eric-adams-said) the door should have closed on its own, but its self-closing mechanisms may have malfunctioned.

Stairwell doors that were also open allowed the heavy smoke to reach "the entire height of the building," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

As many as 200 firefighters responded to the scene, and some ran out of oxygen in their tanks, officials said.

They located residents on every floor with injuries related to severe smoke inhalation, including respiratory and cardiac arrest.

Radio transmissions from the scene indicated at least 63 people were injured, with approximately 32 of those injuries being considered life-threatening.

Officials announced on Sunday that ten adults and nine children had been pronounced dead. Mayor Adams revised the number on Monday to include nine adults and eight children, for a total of 17 deaths.

During a preliminary investigation, fire marshals determined the blaze was started by a malfunctioning electric space heater in a bedroom of the two-story apartment.

The building, which reportedly did have the heat turned on, was not equipped with fire escapes, and Nigro said residents were likely unable to escape using internal stairwells due to the volume of smoke.

The buildings smoke alarms were triggered, Nigro said. Officials will investigate reports from residents that the smoke alarms went off frequently and erroneously, possibly causing a lack of urgency and confusion if there was an active fire in the building at all.

Governor Kathy Hochul said she plans to establish a victim’s compensation fund.

Mayor Adams and Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson both expressed their hopes to “turn our pain into purpose” by improving fire safety education.

Many of the building's residents were originally from Gambia, officials said. Gambian Ambassador Dawda D. Fadera traveled from Washington D.C. to support the community and express the country's grief in the Monday afternoon press conference.

A vigil will be held Tuesday, January 11th from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Angelo Patri School at 2190 Folin Street.

Officials noted it was the city's deadliest fire in decades. It occurred just days after a fire in a row home in Philadelphia left four adults and eight children dead.

Seventeen people were killed and dozens more were injured in a five-alarm apartment building fire started by a malfunctioning space heater Sunday morning in the Bronx, officials said.

Just before 11 a.m. that morning, firefighters located heavy smoke and fire in an apartment that spanned the second and third floor of the 19-story building located at 333 E 181st St in Tremont.

The door to the apartment was left open, and flames spread into the hallway. On Monday morning, Mayor Eric Adams [said](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/nyregion/bronx-fire-nyc/a-door-in-the-bronx-high-rise-may-have-malfunctioned-mayor-eric-adams-said) the door should have closed on its own, but its self-closing mechanisms may have malfunctioned.

Stairwell doors that were also open allowed the heavy smoke to reach "the entire height of the building," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

As many as 200 firefighters responded to the scene, and some ran out of oxygen in their tanks, officials said.

They located residents on every floor with injuries related to severe smoke inhalation, including respiratory and cardiac arrest.

Radio transmissions from the scene indicated at least 63 people were injured, with approximately 32 of those injuries being considered life-threatening.

Officials announced on Sunday that ten adults and nine children had been pronounced dead. Mayor Adams revised the number on Monday to include nine adults and eight children, for a total of 17 deaths.

During a preliminary investigation, fire marshals determined the blaze was started by a malfunctioning electric space heater in a bedroom of the two-story apartment.

The building, which reportedly did have the heat turned on, was not equipped with fire escapes, and Nigro said residents were likely unable to escape using internal stairwells due to the volume of smoke.

The buildings smoke alarms were triggered, Nigro said. Officials will investigate reports from residents that the smoke alarms went off frequently and erroneously, possibly causing a lack of urgency and confusion if there was an active fire in the building at all.

Governor Kathy Hochul said she plans to establish a victim’s compensation fund.

Mayor Adams and Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson both expressed their hopes to “turn our pain into purpose” by improving fire safety education.

Many of the building's residents were originally from Gambia, officials said. Gambian Ambassador Dawda D. Fadera traveled from Washington D.C. to support the community and express the country's grief in the Monday afternoon press conference.

A vigil will be held Tuesday, January 11th from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Angelo Patri School at 2190 Folin Street.

Officials noted it was the city's deadliest fire in decades. It occurred just days after a fire in a row home in Philadelphia left four adults and eight children dead.

Seventeen people were killed and dozens more were injured in a five-alarm apartment building fire started by a malfunctioning space heater Sunday morning in the Bronx, officials said.

Just before 11 a.m. that morning, firefighters located heavy smoke and fire in an apartment that spanned the second and third floor of the 19-story building located at 333 E 181st St in Tremont.

The door to the apartment was left open, and flames spread into the hallway. On Monday morning, Mayor Eric Adams [said](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/nyregion/bronx-fire-nyc/a-door-in-the-bronx-high-rise-may-have-malfunctioned-mayor-eric-adams-said) the door should have closed on its own, but its self-closing mechanisms may have malfunctioned.

Stairwell doors that were also open allowed the heavy smoke to reach "the entire height of the building," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

As many as 200 firefighters responded to the scene, and some ran out of oxygen in their tanks, officials said.

They located residents on every floor with injuries related to severe smoke inhalation, including respiratory and cardiac arrest.

Radio transmissions from the scene indicated at least 63 people were injured, with approximately 32 of those injuries being considered life-threatening.

Officials announced on Sunday that ten adults and nine children had been pronounced dead. Mayor Adams revised the number on Monday to include nine adults and eight children, for a total of 17 deaths.

During a preliminary investigation, fire marshals determined the blaze was started by a malfunctioning electric space heater in a bedroom of the two-story apartment.

The building, which reportedly did have the heat turned on, was not equipped with fire escapes, and Nigro said residents were likely unable to escape using internal stairwells due to the volume of smoke.

The buildings smoke alarms were triggered, Nigro said. Officials will investigate reports from residents that the smoke alarms went off frequently and erroneously, possibly causing a lack of urgency and confusion if there was an active fire in the building at all.

Governor Kathy Hochul said she plans to establish a victim’s compensation fund.

Mayor Adams and Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson both expressed their hopes to “turn our pain into purpose” by improving fire safety education.

Many of the building's residents were originally from Gambia, officials said. Gambian Ambassador Dawda D. Fadera traveled from Washington D.C. to support the community and express the country's grief in the Monday afternoon press conference.

A vigil will be held Tuesday, January 11th from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Angelo Patri School at 2190 Folin Street.

Officials noted it was the city's deadliest fire in decades. It occurred just days after a fire in a row home in Philadelphia left four adults and eight children dead.

Seventeen people were killed and dozens more were injured in a five-alarm apartment building fire started by a malfunctioning space heater Sunday morning in the Bronx, officials said.

Just before 11 a.m. that morning, firefighters located heavy smoke and fire in an apartment that spanned the second and third floor of the 19-story building located at 333 E 181st St in Tremont.

The door to the apartment was left open, and flames spread into the hallway. On Monday morning, Mayor Eric Adams [said](https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/nyregion/bronx-fire-nyc/a-door-in-the-bronx-high-rise-may-have-malfunctioned-mayor-eric-adams-said) the door should have closed on its own, but its self-closing mechanisms may have malfunctioned.

Stairwell doors that were also open allowed the heavy smoke to reach "the entire height of the building," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

As many as 200 firefighters responded to the scene, and some ran out of oxygen in their tanks, officials said.

They located residents on every floor with injuries related to severe smoke inhalation, including respiratory and cardiac arrest.

Radio transmissions from the scene indicated at least 63 people were injured, with approximately 32 of those injuries being considered life-threatening.

Officials announced on Sunday that ten adults and nine children had been pronounced dead. Mayor Adams revised the number on Monday to include nine adults and eight children, for a total of 17 deaths.

During a preliminary investigation, fire marshals determined the blaze was started by a malfunctioning electric space heater in a bedroom of the two-story apartment.

The building, which reportedly did have the heat turned on, was not equipped with fire escapes, and Nigro said residents were likely unable to escape using internal stairwells due to the volume of smoke.

The buildings smoke alarms were triggered, Nigro said. Officials will investigate reports from residents that the smoke alarms went off frequently and erroneously, possibly causing a lack of urgency and confusion if there was an active fire in the building at all.

Governor Kathy Hochul said she plans to establish a victim’s compensation fund.

Mayor Adams and Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson both expressed their hopes to “turn our pain into purpose” by improving fire safety education.

Many of the building's residents were originally from Gambia, officials said. Gambian Ambassador Dawda D. Fadera traveled from Washington D.C. to support the community and express the country's grief in the Monday afternoon press conference.

A vigil will be held Tuesday, January 11th from 3:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. at The Angelo Patri School at 2190 Folin Street.

Officials noted it was the city's deadliest fire in decades. It occurred just days after a fire in a row home in Philadelphia left four adults and eight children dead.