The four-alarm fire started at 2 p.m. Monday afternoon at 1103 Castle Hill Avenue and then spread to the neighboring building at 1101.
Eight people were injured including one of the residents who was taken to the hospital and seven firefighters, authorities said, the injuries reportedly not life-threatening.
Both buildings are mixed-use, with shops on the ground floor and apartments on the two upper floors.
Edgar Reyes, who lived in the building, told us about his experience:
“The firefighter opened my apartment, my room, and told me to get out because there was a fire. It didn’t get any worse, there were no deaths, we’re alive,” Reyes said.
Fire crews worked on top of the buildings as they battled the flames.
Authorities say firefighters had to climb down from the roof as the first building began to sink before partially collapsing.
Pedro Pagán, who lives just feet away from where the fire occurred, tells us what happened.
“The only thing I saw was the fire, the fire started there in the corner and from there with the air it ran here.”
And he says he feels grateful that no one lost their lives.
-Did you see that the ambulances took people?
“The man from here was taken out the window, the one above was taken out, they took him quickly.”
170 firefighters attended the scene of the fire. The Red Cross provided emergency assistance to five homes, nine adults in total.
Meanwhile, Al Rodriguez, who lives in the neighborhood, ran to find his wife.
“When I saw the fire, the smoke, I thought it was the church. I advanced here and she was there and her friends, one of them lives upstairs and the firefighters took her out by the stairs.”
This morning some teams came to the building and began the cleaning work. The inspectors declared both properties uninhabitable due to the damage.
The Red Cross continues to help displaced families. Meanwhile, the investigators try to clarify the cause of the accident.
2023-07-25 18:11:00
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