What to Know
- Panicked residents woke up to the smell of smoke and the sight of flames at an apartment building in Passaic
- They watched from the street as winds fed the flames, challenging firefighters trying to bring the fire under control
- Five residents and two firefighters suffered smoke inhalation and were taken to an area hospital
A fire erupted at an apartment building in Passaic on Thursday morning, sending dozens of residents fleeing to the streets as flames and smoke plumes grew amid strong winds.
People knocked on neighbors’ doors in a panicked rush to wake them up after the fire broke out on Gregory Avenue shortly before 2 a.m.
Some residents said they smelled smoke, while others said it was the flames that prompted them to race from the building.
Chirag Rana said he was awakened by his brother, who had been up late doing work.
“We saw the flames; everybody was rushing out of the building,” Rana said. “It was crazy outside and the cops started knocking on the doors.”
Rana shot cellphone video showing flames pouring from the windows of a first-floor apartment as panicked residents watch on.
Local
Officials said the fire appeared to have started in the kitchen of that first-floor apartment before it spread to the floors above. Thursday's whipping winds fanned the flames, officials said, and residents recalled the fire blowing sideways at one point.
A large group of residents, some wrapped in blankets, stood by as firefighters continued to battle the blaze around 4 a.m. It was brought under control a short time later.
Five residents who were in the first-floor apartment were taken to an area hospital for smoke inhalation. Two firefighters were were also hospitalized for smoke inhalation, officials said.
Passaic Mayor Alex Blanco said 120 residents were at city hall Thursday morning waiting to hear if they could go back into their homes.
