NEW YORK — At least 19 people were killed in a fire at a Bronx apartment high-rise on East 181st Street on Sunday, including nine children, according to The New York Times.
The Commissioner of the New York City Fire Department said the fire was started by a malfunctioning space heater in a bedroom of a third-floor apartment at the building.
Once the fire spread through that apartment, those inside ran out, but left the door open as they did so.
Although this did not mean the fire spread far beyond the apartment, it helped fuel it and allowed the smoke to spread through the whole building, causing the fatalities.
Firefighters arrived within three minutes of the fire starting, just before 11 a.m., and a spokeswoman for the property owners said the fire alarm system was working, with no known issues with smoke detectors.
Several residents told The New York Times that the fire alarms were frequently triggered and as a result were often ignored.
