By Laura French
YONKERS, N.Y. — Three New York firefighters and six other people were injured in a four-alarm high-rise blaze on Wednesday.
Yonkers firefighters responded to the blaze that started on the third floor of the building and caused smoke to spread to other floors after someone left a door open, according to CBS New York. The nine people who were injured, including the three firefighters, are all expected to recover, officials said.
Three residents became trapped in a third-floor apartment and were rescued by a ladder crew, Yonkers Fire Department Deputy Chief Joseph Citrone told the Clarkstown Daily Voice. Citrone also said that one family inside the building jumped from a 19th-floor balcony to an 18th-floor balcony to escape from the smoke.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze after an hour and spent a further four hours checking all of the building’s apartments and managing smoke conditions. The fire and smoke left 20 apartments uninhabitable, caused power to go out between the 10th and 27th floors and left the building’s elevators inoperable, according to Citrone.
Officials believe the fire was caused by a faulty electric baseboard heater.