A tremendous 7-alarm apartment fire in Queens injured 21 people were, including 16 firefighters, when flames erupted from a top-floor apartment at the six-story complex in Jackson Heights. The fire at the 34th Avenue complex was called in just after 1 PM on April 6th. It took the multiple squads of firefighters of the FDNY nearly 12 hours to get the fire under control and by that time the apartment complex was severely damaged.
Strange reports from the fire scene state that residents of the building heard fire alarms going off but did nothing for about ten minutes before calling the fire department and evacuating the complex. If true, those ten minutes could have played in getting to safety. In addition, the apartment in which the fire started was left completely open when the residents escaped—allowing the flames to quickly spread deeper into the structure and to adjoining apartments. Once flames entered the space between the ceiling of the top-floor apartments and the roof of the building, there was no controlling the fire.
Because of the intensity and speed of the fire, 5 residents suffered a variety of serious injuries including smoke inhalation. Several were transported to nearby medical facilities for treatment. Because the building is not inhabitable due to the fire damage. 90 families were forced to find temporary accommodations.
FDNY investigators immediately launched an investigation into the cause of this apartment fire in Queens. High on their list will be whether there were functioning smoke/fire alarms which would have immediately alerted the resident of the building. Depending on the results of the investigation, the residents who were injured could use that determination to prove liability against the at fault parties. An experienced attorney would use that report in establishing the victim’s case for financial compensation for pain and suffering and lost time from work.
If you’ve experienced serious injury in an apartment fire, contact an expert New York City apartment fire lawyer today. Call the Law Offices of Nussin S. Fogel at 800-734-9338 or 212-385-1122 for your free consultation.