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(Mount Eden-WABC, October 26, 2004) -- At first, it was the start of any other day but a fast moving fire quickly changed that for almost a dozen business owners in the Bronx.
The fire broke out just after eight o'clock this morning in a vacant building at 1984 Davidson Avenue before quickly spreading to the other stores.
For many people living in this neighborhood, the corner where the fire occurred was an "anchor" of the neighborhood containing a row of stores that had been around for decades. Now, arson investigators are now focusing in on one particular shop and that is a beauty salon. It is where this morning's fire may have started.
Jose Mena, Witness: "They started working and then they broke up the roof. When that happened the fire came in like a volcano."
Others called the fire a "roaring ball of fire." Newscopter Seven caught the images of the blaze that swept through a row of businesses, a church, clothing store, beauty supply shop and Santiago's grocery.
Felipe Ventura, Manager: "I was sleeping and somebody called me. I woke up and I wanted to see what happened to my people."
Felipe Ventura's family has run the corner store for 22 years. The three-alarm fire severely damaged the shop. Smoke and water seeped inside leaving the long-time business unrecognizable.
Ventura: "Never in my life have I seen something like that before."
Over 150 firefighters responded to the corner W. Tremont Avenue and Davidson just after 8:00 a.m. this morning. By then, flames were shooting out of three stores and were spreading to seven more. Several businesses shared a ceiling space providing an ideal track for the fire to race across.
Asst. Chief Joe Callan, FDNY: "Not only did it travel through the partition walls, but the main horizontal spread problem was because of the ceiling area which is common among eight of the stores."
More than a dozen firefighters were treated for minor injuries and they will recover.
A total of 16 firefighters were brought to the hospital with things like cuts, bruises and smoke inhalation. At one point, firefighters thought they would have to evacuate people living in a neighboring apartment building but they didn't have to do that because they were able to hold back the fire.
