bronx fire

1 Dead After Explosion at NYC Apartment Building Leads to Partial Collapse, Major Fire

The explosion and fire was about 3 miles from a deadly Bronx apartment fire earlier this month that killed 17 people

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At least one person is dead after an explosion at a Bronx apartment building set off a massive fire and led to a partial building collapse on Tuesday.

The NYPD said a 77-year-old woman was dead, and two other women, ages 68 and 82, were in stable condition. Two of them women, sisters, were found on the ground outside the building; one of them later died. The third civilian victim was still inside. Five cops suffered smoke inhalation and were taken to hospitals as well.

The explosion was initially thought to be gas-related, but Con Ed said it had no indication that was the case. Mayor Eric Adams, at a Tuesday afternoon news conference at the scene, said the gas was off to the entire block as a precaution.

FDNY officials said they were sifting through the rubble for possible evidence as to an underlying cause.

Eyewitnesses told News 4 they heard at least two explosions, followed by flames. Onlookers at first thought it was snowing, until they realized it was ash from the fire coming down instead.

Video tweeted by a New York City Council member showed thick black smoke pouring from the building in the 800 block of Fox Street and an active FDNY response.

The fire is about 3 miles south of the deadly Bronx blaze earlier this month that killed 17 people. Many of those victims, some of them young children, were mourned over the weekend.

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