(New York -WABC, December 5, 2004) -- It was a close call for some parents and kids as fire broke out at their Brooklyn row house on Sunday. Kids in pajamas escaped the blaze as firefighter after firefighter succombed to smoke inhalation. Eyewitness News reporter Marcus Solis is in Bushwick where it all happened.
Many in this building called themselves lucky today, despite the total loss. This morning a three alarm fire ripped through their rowhouse on Decator street in Bushwick. It started on the third floor of this building in an abandoned apartment. One resident suffered minor injuries. Dozens of others, including several children, escaped the flames by running out in their pajamas.
More than a dozen firefighters suffered minor injuries, mainly smoke inhalation. It took crews nearly an hour and a half to bring the suspicious fire under control. The biggest problem: The common roof shared by the three story structure.
Chief Howard Hill, FDNY: "Fire spreads very, very rapidly in these buildings. It's not unusual sometimes to lose three or four..."
And in this case several were close to the fire building. That building, 976 Decatur, is a total loss. The adjoining homes have some damage as well. The Red Cross is helping relocate several residents, still many consider themselves fortunate there were no serious injuries.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
