A massive fire tore through a row of Queens storefronts early Saturday, trapping two firefighters under a collapsed roof and decimating several shops in a matter of minutes.
One of the two FDNY firefighters was rushed to the hospital with severe burns after the 2:15 a.m. blaze in Queens Village that left shop owners stunned hours later.
“We lost everything in a matter of a ... minute. We were in bed and someone from the community called and told me what’s going on,” Ralph Torres, co-owner of Beatriz Dominican Salon, said as he looked over the gutted remains of his family shop on Springfield Blvd.
“This is something me and my wife built,” Torres, 56, said. “We devastated. We devastated man. You build something and you lose it overnight, it’s gone.”
Two other businesses near 112th Ave. were scorched along with the hair salon, including the Springfield Cutz Barbershop and Spring Pharmacy.
FDNY fire marshals were still trying to determine Saturday where and how the fire started. 911 calls directed firefighters to the barbershop, but officials noted that the fire was heaviest in the salon, whose roof also partially collapsed.
Firefighters were in the back of the barbershop when its burning ceiling gave way, trapping two smoke eaters inside, said FDNY Assistant Chief of Department Joseph Jardin.
“A portion of the roof collapsed trapping two of our members initially,” Jardin said at the scene. “They discovered the member under a 20 foot by 20 foot section of wood joisted roof, a heavy section of roof with fire in proximity where the member was trapped.”
1 comment:
This reminds me that they never caught the arsonist who burned down rows of shops in Flushing and Kew Gardens Hills. Hell, the Fire Department never even officially acknowledged it was arson - they spent all that time 'investigating' only to declare their results inconclusive at the end.
Wonder if it's the same guy...
Post a Comment