At least six people were killed and several others injured after a fire broke out at a residential building in Brooklyn, New York, early Thursday, authorities said.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the incident as a “devastating” tragedy, saying six residents had lost their lives, reports AFP.
“I am heartbroken to announce that six New Yorkers lost their lives,” Mamdani told reporters, adding that firefighters reached the scene less than four minutes after receiving the emergency call.
According to the mayor, four victims were found dead when firefighters from the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) arrived, while two others died later at a hospital. All six victims were adults.
Four civilians were also injured in the fire. In addition, three firefighters and two police officers sustained minor injuries, he said.
Footage from the scene showed flames engulfing several windows of a row-style residential building in the Sunset Park neighbourhood of Brooklyn, about five miles (eight kilometres) from Manhattan.
Mamdani said it was too early to establish what caused the fire. However, he assured residents that the findings of the investigation would be made public.
Describing the impact on the community, he said the neighbourhood would need considerable time to mourn the victims and recover from the tragedy.
Daniel Flynn, first deputy commissioner of the FDNY, said fire marshals were investigating the incident to determine the cause.
He described the incident as a terrible tragedy and said investigators hoped to establish the cause as soon as possible.
In a separate incident last month, four people died in New York’s Bronx borough after an electric bicycle battery caught fire inside an apartment.
