Fire officials say 14 people were injured, four seriously, in a fire at a Bronx apartment building.
A 4-year-old child, a 50-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman were listed in critical condition.
The fire started late Wednesday night in a second-floor apartment at 2727 University Avenue at West 195th Street. It spread to the rest of the six-story building through vents, with flames and smoke blocking hallways and stairwells for those trying to escape.
"I thought I was going to die," said resident Jeimy Diaz. "When my husband opened the door, I saw all that smoke inside -- it was dark."
Diaz and some other residents climbed the fire escapes to the roof, where they screamed for help from responding firefighters.
Twenty-five fire units and 106 firefighters responded, using ladders and buckets to answer the cries for help.
Four people went to the hospital with serious injuries. One man had deep cuts after breaking his bedroom window to escape.
Eight residents and three firefighters were among the others who suffered non-life-threatening injuries, including elderly resident Sharron Ryan, who described feeling "dizzy from inhaling all that smoke."
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
