At least 19 people were killed, including nine children, and dozens were injured when a fire started by a malfunctioning space heater spread smoke through a 19-floor building in The Bronx borough of New York City on Sunday, city officials said.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams, just over a week into the job, confirmed 19 people had died from the blaze that broke out around 11 am in the imposing Twin Parks North West building which provided affordable housing units and was home to a Gambian community.
The fire itself started from a space heater in an apartment that spanned the second and third floors of the building, and only made it to the hall, officials said.
But smoke still spread to every floor of the building, likely because the door to the apartment was left open, the city’s fire department Commissioner Daniel Nigro told reporters at a news briefing.
Fire officers had determined through physical evidence and account from residents the fire started in a portable electric heater in the apartment’s bedroom, Nigro said.
He added the heat had been on in the apartment building and the portable heater had been supplementing that heating.
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