NEW YORK -- A man was critically injured last night when he was horribly burned by a fire in his Harlem apartment -- then jumped three stories in a desperate escape.
The victim, who was not identified, suffered burns over 90 percent of his body, as well as a serious head injury in the fall.
Three other people were hurt in the blaze, which broke out at about 8:30 p.m. in the six-story building at 250 E. 105th St..
"The man jumped . . . landed on some [garbage] bags and bounced onto the sidewalk," said witness Josephine Piedro. "His head was cracked open."
Firefighter Jerry Dietz found a woman hanging from a window. "I dragged her in and told her everything was going to be all right," he said. "I think she was ready to [jump], too."
The cause of the blaze is under investigation.
Republished with permission of The New York Post.
