(VIDEO) Woman Dies, More Than 20 Injured as Five-Alarm Fire Tears Through Flushing, Queens Homes Late Saturday

A 78-year-old woman died and more than 20 other people, most of them firefighters and emergency medical workers, were injured Saturday when a fast-moving fire tore through a row of century-old wood-frame homes in the Flushing section of Queens, New York City fire officials said.

The New York City Fire Department said it received the initial call around 9:52 a.m. for a fire at a home near College Point Boulevard and 41st Road. Firefighters arriving at the scene found two buildings already fully engulfed in flames, with the fire quickly spreading to a third structure. The response was escalated in stages, ultimately reaching five alarms as more than 250 firefighters and emergency medical personnel, operating across 84 units, converged on the scene.

A dangerous rescue under intense heat

The buildings involved were part of a row of five wood-frame homes built around 1930, according to fire officials. FDNY Chief of Fire Operations Kevin Woods said the structures’ wooden walls, floors and roofs allowed the flames to spread unusually fast, making it difficult for crews to get ahead of the fire even as they moved in aggressively to attack it from multiple directions.

After receiving reports that people remained trapped inside, firefighters pushed to the second floor of the main fire building and searched through intense heat and zero visibility, ultimately locating and rescuing an occupant without the protection of a hose line — a high-risk maneuver fire officials say reflects the urgency crews faced in the moment. Woods later praised the response, describing the firefighters’ work in preventing the blaze from spreading to two additional adjoining homes with similar wood-frame construction as “phenomenal.”

A woman’s death confirmed hours later

The New York Police Department said a 78-year-old woman who lived in one of the burning homes was taken to the hospital in critical condition and later died from her injuries. Her name had not been released as of Saturday evening. A second resident of the home suffered what officials described as minor injuries.

Witnesses described scenes of chaos and heavy smoke as the fire spread through the block. “It’s horrible. It’s sad. I can’t describe it,” said Yezen Al-Swaiti, who witnessed the blaze, capturing the shock felt by neighbors as they watched flames and smoke overtake the row of homes.

Dozens hurt battling the blaze

Beyond the civilian casualties, fire officials said at least 21 first responders were transported to local hospitals, most suffering non-life-threatening injuries that included heat exhaustion, smoke inhalation, and minor strains and sprains sustained while fighting the fire in difficult conditions. Five of the injured firefighters sustained moderate to serious injuries, with one hospitalized in serious condition. Officials said all injured service members were expected to survive.

Woods said the scale of the response, which included calling in additional firefighting and EMS units well beyond what a typical residential fire would require, was intended to ensure crews had proper relief as they worked for hours in extreme heat and hazardous smoke conditions.

Extensive damage, families displaced

The three buildings most directly affected by the fire sustained heavy damage, and officials said an estimated 10 to 12 residents have been displaced as a result. Some of those displaced are staying with relatives, while the American Red Cross has stepped in to assist others who lack immediate housing options.

Fire crews managed to stop the flames from spreading further down the row of homes, protecting the two remaining structures from suffering similar damage. The fire was declared under control at 1:47 p.m., roughly four hours after the initial call, though the FDNY said it expected to remain on scene for an extended period afterward to monitor for hotspots and ensure the blaze did not reignite.

Cause remains under investigation

As of Saturday evening, fire officials had not determined what sparked the blaze. Investigators are expected to examine the scene in the coming days as part of a broader effort to determine the fire’s origin and how it was able to spread so rapidly across multiple structures in such a short period of time.

The age and construction style of the affected homes — wood-frame structures dating back nearly a century — is likely to draw scrutiny as investigators assess both the cause of the fire and the factors that allowed it to escalate so quickly once it began.

A reminder of the risks firefighters face

Saturday’s fire adds to a string of major multi-alarm blazes New York City firefighters have battled this year, underscoring the physical toll such incidents routinely take on first responders even when structures are ultimately saved and casualties are minimized. The high number of firefighter injuries, even without fatalities among first responders, reflects the extreme conditions crews frequently operate under when battling fast-spreading fires in older, densely built residential blocks.

City officials have not yet indicated whether the incident will prompt any broader review of fire safety standards for older wood-frame housing stock in the area, though such reviews have followed similarly destructive fires in the city’s outer boroughs in past years.

For now, the Flushing community is left grappling with the loss of a longtime resident and the displacement of several families, even as fire officials credited the rapid and expansive response with preventing what could have been a far more devastating outcome across the full row of homes.