12 die in Bronx building with history of bad smoke detectors

From the Daily News:

A raging fire quickly swept through the five story building on Prospect Ave. at E. 187th St. — taking with it 12 lives — including a one-year-old child.

More than 160 firefighters responded to the five-alarm blaze near the Bronx Zoo. The inferno broke out at 6:51 p.m. on the first floor and quickly spread upward. Firefighters responded in three minutes, after receiving more than a dozen 911 calls.

The cause of the fire was not immediately clear. Sources said the blaze may have been sparked by a space heater, but de Blasio said was too early in the investigation to tell.

A database in the New York City Housing Preservation and Development revealed one of the apartments on the first floor — where the fire started — had open violations for bad carbon monoxide and smoke detectors.

Attempts to reach the building owners were unsuccessful.

Cigarette, non-functional alarm cause of child's death

From PIX 11:

Smoking caused the Queens apartment fire that killed a 12-year-old boy on Sunday, according to the FDNY.

Fire marshals reported that the cause of the fire was accidental and related to smoking. The building's smoke alarm was also not operational.

Man dies in house without smoke alarms after fire

From the Daily News:

A deadly blaze that ripped through a two-story home in Queens Sunday killed one person and injured another, officials said.

The fire started in the cellar of a home on Springfield Blvd. in Queens Village around 2 p.m. and quickly spread up the first-floor staircase, fire officials said.

Fire officials don’t know yet what sparked the blaze but said there were no working smoke detectors in the home.