YONKERS, N.Y. — The Yonkers Fire Department was investigating arson as a possible cause for a three-alarm fire that destroyed a multifamily home on Webster Avenue, damaged four others, briefly trapped six firefighters and displaced 28 residents Sunday afternoon.
“We do have reason to believe it was intentionally set,” Deputy Chief John Flynn said on the scene.
Yonkers firefighters responded to the blaze at the multifamily home at 103 Webster Ave. at 3:38 p.m. Sunday.
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When firefighters arrived, flames and heavy smoke were coming out of the top of the three-story building. The fast-moving fire destroyed the structure and quickly spread to the homes on each side. In total, five buildings sustained fire damage, Flynn said, including two that were severely damaged.
The firefighters rescued a person from a second-story window of the home at 103 Webster Ave., Flynn said. But crews were unable to save “several” animals who died in the fire, he said.
Toward the latter stage of the blaze, six firefighters from two companies were trapped by advancing fire in the rear of the home, Flynn said. They were rescued by FAST, or Firefighters Assist Team, who used ladders outside the building to get the responders out, he said.
One fire lieutenant suffered some injuries, Flynn said, but he was unsure of the extent of the injuries. Four residents were taken to the hospital after complaining of difficulty breathing, officials said.
The fire department had the blaze under control by about 5:30 p.m. Sunday, but 60-plus firefighters remained on the scene into the evening. Flynn said they would likely be there for several more hours.
“It was really a heavy firefight and required an intensive amount of manpower,” Flynn said.
Flynn declined to say where in the home at 103 Webster Ave. the fire began, saying it was still under investigation.
As of Sunday evening, officials had still blocked off a good portion of Webster Avenue and the connecting streets near Yonkers Avenue. Near the yellow crime scene tape, dozens of neighbors and interested spectators looked on.
Red Cross officials said they were helping 28 residents displaced by the blaze, giving them temporary shelter at the Good Shepard Presbyterian Church at Elm and Walnut streets.
