Robert De Niro’s Central Park West apartment went up in flames today when lint in a clothes dryer caught fire, sources said.
“Right above my head these 12 foot tall flames exploded out of the 5th floor window,” said Nathan Bear, 23, who was outside moving his car.
The fire started around 2 p.m. in a pricey high rise near West 68th Street and took firefighters an hour to get under control, officials said.
“The dryer in 5W caused the fire that spread through the entire 5th floor,” said Battalion Chief Mike Meyers.
A firefighter at the scene said, “Some of the lint [in the dryer] caught fire.”
The 5th floor had extensive damaged from the fire, smoke and water, fire department officials said. The 4th and 6th floor apartments were also damaged in the all hands fire, Meyers said.
“I had a real hard time getting out of the building. The smoke was so dark and heavy, it was hard to breathe,” said Gail W., who lives on the 6th floor.