HOT WHEELS
Firebug torches over 100 cars at B’klyn mall
More than 100 cars burst into flames at a Brooklyn shopping plaza early Monday, and cops have arrested the man they believe started the blaze — a furious firebug who sources say had revenge on his mind.
The roaring inferno sent huge plumes of smoke into the sky and injured 22 firefighters and six civilians.
Police arrested Avon Stephens, 23, Monday night and charged him with arson. Sources said he made statements admitting to starting the blaze.
A police source said the suspect periodically slept at the garage and had been repeatedly shooed away by mall security.
Cops believe Stephens — caught on surveillance footage near the conflagration — might have been angry after getting kicked out of his favorite snoozing spot, the sources said.
“Outstanding job by #NYPD Strategic Response Group Officers Domarecki & Reiff with the apprehension of an individual wanted for questioning in regards to today’s 7 alarm fire in the Kings Plaza Mall parking garage,” the NYPD Special Operations Bureau announced on its Twitter account Monday night.
The blaze broke out about 8:25 a.m. on the second level of the parking garage at Kings Plaza in Mill Basin.
Up to 120 cars were ignited by the fire, FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said. The cars were being stored there by a local Mercedes-Benz dealership.
It took more more than 250 firefighters just over two hours to bring the fast-moving fire under control. The blaze was so large it forced the mall to close for the day.
“We don’t know yet what started the fire,” said Commissioner Nigro. “It created a huge amount of black smoke, there was a large amount of fire confronting our people.”
He said the flames were confined to the second-level of the garage — but there might have been additional damage to the structure itself.
“Our members are conducting an examination ... it’s certainly stable right now,” Nigro said. “If we have to go further, we’ll bring in engineers from the Department of Buildings.”
One passerby said she heard a series of blasts from inside the burning garage.
“I’m right by Kings Plaza and it’s literally on fire,” a Twitter user named Kells wrote. “I hear explosions and stuff it’s insane.”
The large popping noises people heard during the blaze was likely tires exploding, Nigro said.
Of the 28 total victims hurt in the fire, a few were hospitalized and the rest treated at the scene.
The heavy humidity created a suffocating atmosphere for the firefighters, according to the FDNY.
Although the sides of the parking garage were open, the acrid haze didn’t ventilate well — and several firefighters suffered from smoke inhalation and heat exhaustion, Nigro said.
A security camera at the parking garage caught the main suspect leaving the scene shortly before the fire erupted. Cops released his photos Monday afternoon. The man was described as black, last seen in a white shirt, dark pants and darkcolored shoes.
Detectives had initially suspected a disgruntled car washer for the dealership
started the blaze intentionally.
But they later zeroed in on the man seen in the security footage.
The blaze came just a few days after performer Rihanna made a surprise appearance at the mall's JC Penny's outlet Friday for the Fenty Beauty anniversary party.
“Seeing ‘Kings Plaza' trending I was like oh lord, there must've been a shooting!! funny but not funny ... yikes,” wrote a Twitter user about the performer's visit.
Mace Rich, a company which owns the mall, could not be reached for comment.
The Mercedes-Benz dealership was not the only car company that stored vehicles in the mall.
A manager at Brooklyn Chrysler just a few blocks away from the burning parking garage said his business also used the facility to hold vehicles.
“We have 600 hundred cars stored there,” said the worker, who asked to remain anonymous.
“We haven't been able to get to them. We don't know what we lost,” he said, adding that the Brooklyn Chrysler cars were held on the structure's upper levels.
Julie Hernandez was flabbergasted to hear that a nearby car dealership employee may have set the fire in anger.
“That's crazy if that's true,” she said. “Why would you burn the place down though? If you don't like your boss just quit. Now the cops are gonna get you and you're gonna get arrested. I've never seen anything like this before and I've lived here my whole life.”