New York Daily News
(TNS)
Six businesses were destroyed Thursday as a massive fire tore through a row of Bronx stores — and the FDNY’s response was hampered by a brazen motorist who parked his car by a nearby fire hydrant, officials said.
Firefighters’ response to the blaze at the corner of Jerome and Burnside Aves. in Morris Heights was briefly delayed as a result, Deputy Mayor of Public Safety Kaz Daughtry said at the fire scene.
“There was a vehicle blocking a fire hydrant, slowing down the fire apparatus’ ability to connect to the hydrant,” Daughtry said. “We’re asking all New Yorkers to please be mindful. Have a little compassion when parking by fire hydrants.”
Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker said the driver was issued a misdemeanor criminal court summons, much like the one given to a woman who parked by a hydrant outside a Bronx Buddhist temple that caught fire. Two people died in that Feb. 12 blaze.
The owner of the car parked in the off-limits spot by the temple, Quinaysa Arnold, was ultimately hit with a $4,000 fine, Tucker said.
“We are talking about parking by fire hydrants way too much these days,” Tucker said. So far this year, firefighters responding to two fatal fires found cars blocking hydrants, he said.
“If you think parking by a fire hydrant is a convenience, it’s not,” Tucker said. “It’s a recipe for death. We’ve already seen that twice now.”
Witnesses called 911 around 8:20 a.m. after seeing smoke coming from a restaurant on Jerome Ave. When they arrived, responding firefighters found the restaurant ablaze — as well as fire in five adjoining stores stretching toward the corner, FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito said.
The flames quickly spread to five alarms, bringing more than 200 firefighters to the scene, Esposito said. Heavy smoke could be seen pouring out of the roof as firefighters hosed down the scene from tower ladders.
The fire got so bad that firefighters had to be pulled out of the stores and switch to an exterior operation, Esposito said. During the fire, at least one ceiling collapsed, he said.
The blaze quickly spread after it got into the cockloft of the adjoined buildings — the space between the ceiling and the roof, FDNY officials said.
“We don’t know where the fire started,” Esposito said. “The fire had significant headway on us. Most of the fire was in the cockloft space. These are very old buildings that have been renovated numerous times, so there are several ceiling levels that are 3 to 4 feet deep. It’s very time consuming to open that up and put water in there to extinguish the fire.”
No injuries were reported.
FDNY fire marshals on Thursday were trying to determine what sparked the fire.
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