A massive fire broke out at a Brooklyn supermarket Wednesday night, injuring seven people and forcing the evacuation of about 30 residents, which quickly spread to four nearby apartment buildings.
The fire broke out just before 6 p.m. inside Krista’s Kitchen & Market on Bushwick Avenue in Bushwick and escalated to at least a five-alarm blaze, with more than 250 smokers responding, FDNY officials said at the scene. mentioned in.
All seven people sustained minor injuries, including six firefighters (five of whom were taken to local hospitals) and one civilian who was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. .
“This fire has affected this community, not just the supermarket that they use, but residents in four different buildings in this community,” FDNY First Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeiffer told reporters at the scene. “I gave them,” he said. “And our hearts go out to those residents.”
The fire, which FDNY officials described as a “very high volume fire,” started in the grocery store and quickly destroyed two adjacent buildings to its left and at least two other buildings on Cooper Street behind it. Burnt it down.
Even though the first firefighters arrived within three minutes of the 911 call, the old wooden building next door burst into flames like a matchstick.
“We were really trying to get ahead of this,” Chief of Staff Thomas Curao said. “This is truly one of the challenges in wooden construction.”
As officers spoke, a fire engine continued to spray water behind the charred storefront.
“We’re going to be on the ground for quite a while,” Curao said. “We’ll set up a surveillance line. [to make] May this fire be completely extinguished. ”
Red Cross personnel also responded and assisted 30 residents who were left homeless by the fire and smoke.
“[We] We were able to get everyone together and get a bus to the reception center, where we were able to accept the clients and find them accommodation,” Red Cross employee Eric DeClair told the Post.
They handed out blankets and water bottles to affected tenants.
One of the refugees, named Mark, was left speechless as hell descended on his home.
“My house is on fire and sizzling,” he told the Post. “What do you want me to say?”
He said about 15 people live in his apartment.
Another woman named Kat said her grandmother lived in one of the burned buildings, but was lucky she wasn’t home when the fire broke out.
“I came to see the damage. The damage has been done,” she said.
Smoke darkened the sky and was visible for about a mile. Some residents who gathered near the scene to see what was happening said they witnessed it on their way home.
“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Will, a 22-year-old restaurant worker who saw the flames from the J train above ground.
It’s unclear what started the fire. The fire department plans to investigate the cause.
