Senior dies in fire in basement apt.
A 70-YEAR-OLD man was killed in a blaze that swept through his Bronx home, officials said Sunday.
The fire started about 10:20 p.m. Saturday in the basement of the two-story residence on 182nd St. near Bassford Ave. in Belmont.
Firefighters found the man in the basement apartment and rushed him to St. Barnabas Hospital, where he died, authorities said. His name wasn’t released.
About 60 firefighters battled the blaze and had it under control in 90 minutes, the FDNY said. Two firefighters suffered minor injuries and went to St. Barnabas Hospital.
“My nephews were sleeping on the first floor. They saw the smoke and started screaming and saying, ‘It’s a fire,’” said a woman who lives on the second floor. “They called 911 and went outside.”
Several residents tried to alert the elderly man in the basement unit – screaming to him, calling him, even attempting to kick his door down.
“My son tried to knock the door to tell him to get out, but there was a lot of smoke and he had to get out,” the woman told the Daily News. “My sister called him a lot of times, but he don’t answer.”
“He’s deaf. He had problems with his hearing. My mom knocked the door and he wasn’t answering,” said another resident. “When she tried to open the door, she couldn’t. The knob was hot. “They tried to kick it down,” he added. Medics put a respirator on the man after he was brought out. “He was all burnt. His arm and his face,” the resident recalled. “He was still.”
The man’s family is in Puerto Rico, and he lived alone, neighbors said. He lived in the building for 12 years – nine of them in the basement apartment.
FDNY fire marshals will determine the cause of the fire.