NEW YORK — A gruesome disaster consumed the top floor of a Manhattan building overnight, forcing people to evacuate and leaving dozens of tenants without access to their homes.
The fire in a six-story building in West 141st Street in Hamilton Heights ultimately triggered a 5-alarm response, bringing about 200 firefighters and EMS personnel to the blaze, the FDNY said.
Emergency services first arrived at the building around 1:30 a.m. Saturday and found the fire on the top floor.
The building and its 42 units were inaccessible to all residents long after the Fire Department took control and put out the flames. The American Red Cross estimated that at least 109 were temporarily displaced by the fire. The organization set up emergency assistance at nearby PS 192 for anyone in need of food or shelter.
FDNY officials said at least nine people were injured in the fire, seven of whom were firefighters.
Investigators were able to rule out that the fire was accidental, caused by electrical wiring in the top-floor ceiling, the FDNY said.