7 Online - November 28, 2010
by Josh EinigerBRONX (WABC) -- A fire official says one man is dead and seven people were injured in a fire in an apartment building in the Bronx. The Fire Department of New York says five of the victims are in serious condition. Two have minor injuries. They were all taken to Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center.
"I saw people falling down, I saw people crying, I saw a guy lying down in the hallway in that building, all burnt up," said Dinorah Gonzalez, a building resident.
The horrifying images are seared in Gonzalez's memory.
"The flames were coming inside under my door, I was so scared, I didn't have time to pick up no clothes, no nothing," Gonzalez said.
She's one of 120 residents of the apartment building on 169th Street near the Grand Concourse.
The first flames ignited just before 10 Saturday night and quickly spread.
Firefighters brought the fire under control, but not before a 46-year-old man died and seven others were hurt.
"The Thanksgiving holiday has just occurred, and people are very distraught about what has occurred," said Charles Wells of the Red Cross.
The Red Cross has established a shelter at nearby PS 64, where people tried to get some rest.
But Dinorah Gonzalez didn't sleep a wink as she worried about her neighbors, some of whom wound up in the hospital.
"They are my family, when I'm not home they look out for my children, you know we are always looking out for each other," Gonzalez said.
Fire officials say the fire is potentially suspicious.
