One person was killed when a blaze tore through an apartment building in Hamilton Heights Monday, the FDNY said.
The four-alarm fire broke out in the six-story building on West 136th Street, near the City College campus, at around 5:45 p.m., according to officials.
One resident said she fled from the building with her dog via a second-floor fire escape.
“I saw the black smoke coming up and I grabbed my dog, Lucky, and got out as quick as possible,” said fourth-floor resident Sandra De La Cruz.
“We couldn’t pass, the smoke was too strong. So the majority of us got out through the fire escape.”
The unidentified victim was found badly burned on a staircase landing at the top floor, according to the FDNY.
Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the blaze started in a stairwell on the first floor and quickly spread throughout the entire building.
“Unfortunately, we did have a loss of life,” Nigro said outside the building last night. “They were found in the top floor and they were badly burned.”
The commissioner said the fire was deemed suspicious because of the large volume of the blaze.
A civilian and 10 firefighters suffered minors injuries in the blaze.