Multiple people were injured, including one critically, in an early morning blaze in an apartment building at 265 Penn Street in Williamsburg Monday morning.

Hatzolah and the FDNY rushed to the scene shortly before 7 am and found heavy fire on the first floor of the building which was extending to the second floor. More than 100 firefighters were called in to battle the blaze, with a second alarm declared soon after the FDNY’s arrival.

Hatzolah dispatched ambulances and members from Williamsburg, Crown Heights, Lower East Side, Flatbush and Boro Park to the scene, where they treated 17 patients, all of whom were suffering from smoke inhalation – including one who had gone into traumatic arrest.

Others inside the building were evacuated via portable ladders and FDNY tower ladders. The structure is a four-story mixed-use building with one commercial unit and six residential units.

FDNY Deputy Assistant Chief Fred Villani said, “We were met with a large number of patients early on and almost all at the same time. Once they were rescued by the Firefighters, EMS personnel on the scene had to make rapid decisions on the severity of injuries. One of the patients was critical and was immediately transported to the hospital by Hatzalah volunteers. We were lucky in that we are about half a block away from one of Hatzalah’s quarters, so we had plenty of help at the outset. FDNY EMTs and Paramedics as well as Hatzalah volunteers triaged the rest of the patients. In total we had 16 stable non-critical patients, and one critical patient.”

Additional information will be published as it becomes available.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)