Metro

Fatal apartment fire sparked by overloaded extension cord

The fast-moving fire that killed a teenage girl and left nearly a dozen families homeless was sparked by an overloaded extension cord, and spread when a tenant escaped and left the apartment door open, the fire commissioner said on Tuesday.

Melisa Mendez, 15, died Monday when flames engulfed the Hamilton Heights apartment building where she lived with her family.

But Fire Commissioner Dan Nigro said the girl would probably still be alive if two simple fire safety rules had been followed.

“Last night’s fire started because of an extension cord, a power strip that was overloaded that was underneath furniture. This is nothing new to the Fire Department,” Nigro said.

“The reason it spread and the reason this young lady lost her life was that the occupant of the apartment on the first floor left the apartment and did not close the door behind. We cannot stress enough and we have in the past forgotten this lesson, but folks forget it all the time: If you’re leaving the apartment, close the door.

Jeannie Mendez, niece of Melisa Mendez, is seen near the scene of the fatal fire.David McGlynn

“The fire quickly spread to the hall, it quickly spread upstairs, and that was the cause of the loss of life.”

The four-alarm blaze broke out in the six-story building on West 136th Street, near the City College campus, at around 5:45 p.m., and left nearly a dozen families homeless, authorities said.

A day later, shaken survivors traded tales of brave escape — and sorrow over the young neighbor who didn’t make it out.

“She was making her way down with her father,” said Altagracia Hernandez, 50, describing the frantic hallway scene. “ It looks like he lost her in the smoke. He came out and started saying, ‘She came out with me.’ They found her on the stairs later.”

Neighbors remembered Melisa as a quiet, but friendly girl. Her Facebook page said she went to Manhattan Academy for Arts & Language, and features a volume of fun photos with her and her friends.

“I was with my daughter. I was giving her a bath when I smelled smoke,” said Joel Mellado, 28, who moved into a 5th-floor apartment four months ago. “We opened the window and there was the smoke. I went out running with my daughter. It was already getting smoky. Thank God I’m alive.”