The FDNY said one person has died following an “all hands” residential fire that broke out in Norwood on Wednesday night.

 

FDNY officials said the alarm was raised at 21.39 p.m. on Aug. 2 for reports of a fire at 3565 Reservoir Oval East. In fact, the fire broke out at 3273 Perry Avenue, a two-story, residential home, the back of which faces Reservoir Oval East [with one other building in between], the side of which faces Holt Place, and the front of which faces Perry Avenue.

 

“Twelve units/60 members were utilized during operations,” the FDNY official told Norwood News. “One patient was pronounced as deceased on scene,” the spokesperson said, adding that the fire was placed under control at 11.29 p.m. and no cause had yet been determined for the blaze.

 

Several fire trucks, members of the NYPD, and a large crowd had gathered at the scene just before 10 p.m. Local resident, Kabir Ahmed, told Norwood News, “I come over here and I see the fire had started and the firefighters are coming.” Asked if he saw any people coming out of the affected home, Ahmed said, “No, no, I see only the firefighters are going up.”

 

Asked if the fire was on the second floor, Ahmed said, “No, I don’t see anybody on the second floor. I see only the dark. There’s no light on the second.” Ahmed was facing the front of the building while firefighters appeared to be tackling the remains of the fire at the rear of the building where smoke was still seen rising up.

 

Asked again if he knew if the fire had been on the second floor, Ahmed said, “Yeah, fire on the second floor, left side kitchen. Start from kitchen.” Asked if he saw any injured people, Ahmed said, “No, I don’t see anybody injured.”

Another male resident told us he didn’t see the fire itself and only arrived once the flames were no longer visible and the building was smoking. He said, “I just hope everyone inside is safe.”

 

Speaking in Spanish, one young female resident who said she lives on another street one block south of Perry Avenue said she had heard [from inside her home] a loud boom noise earlier in the evening at around 9.40 p.m. When we asked the FDNY if they could already tell if there had been an explosion, the spokesperson responded, saying, “Nothing in the text [of the initial fire report] indicates that there was an explosion.”

 

Asked if she saw anyone injured, the female resident went on to say, “No, they didn’t take anyone out injured.” She clarified that this was to her knowledge. Some stretchers and a few ambulances were seen parked down the block from the scene. The young woman was joined by another female resident, Dorca Martinez, who shared some video footage of the fire with us. At this stage, it was not known that someone had died. “Thanks be to God nothing happened,” Martinez said of the incident. Asked if the fire had been big, both women said, “Yes.” From the outside, at least, both the first and second floors appeared to be damaged.

Later, as fire officials were smashing the windowpanes on the second floor of the building and throwing items out the windows, we spoke with two brothers, Mohamed and Ubaidullah Ansari, who live in a home on Perry Avenue next door to the affected home where the fire broke out. They said they both live in the home with their wives and children, and Ubaidullah is the homeowner.

 

“When, in the evening, I came home from the airport to eat with my wife and kids and was just sitting at the table having dinner, all of a sudden I felt the smoke smell,” Mohamed said. “Immediately, I went outside to check, and I notice the fire on second floor.” Asked if he could see the flames, Mohamed said not at that stage, only smoke. [Norwood News could smell smoke on our approach from Bainbridge Avenue.]

 

“I immediately called 911,” Mohamed said. “They came very fast. They start taking under control. I went [to] my rooftop to check what happened. It is burning like all throughout the floor, I believe, at the top floor.” Asked to clarify if his own roof was also on fire, Mohamed said, “I check my house. I feel like good but it’s very close, so there is damage. It’ll come, but again, I’m worried [about] one thing. I hope they will take care of it. I went to the [fire] captain and I talked about it. I believe it’s two years ago next door, not this house, the next house was burned in the afternoon, [and] after 14 hours at midnight, [the] whole house burned again so that’s my concern.”

 

Mohamed was referring to two fires, reported by Norwood News, a few doors down the street at 3279 Perry Avenue on Monday, June 28, 2021. Mohamed said he reminded the fire captain about that incident and said he even remembered the captain’s face from the previous two fires.

 

When another Perry Avenue neighbor, John McCarthy, commended two young boys who lived in the affected home where the two fires had broken out on that occasion, for having raised the alarm, Norwood News attempted to speak to the impacted family at the time about the incident and the boys’ quick reaction, but they declined to be interviewed.

“So dangerous,” Mohamed said of the 2021 incident. “Kids, family, elderly like, you know? I hope it’s not repeating this time. They [FDNY] will do the right job, I hope. We don’t want to see the repeat again.” Mohamed appeared to believe that the second fire in 2021 had reignited 14 hours after the first one at 3279 Perry Avenue. Norwood News has asked the FDNY the reason for both fires and will update this story upon receipt of feedback.

 

Mohamed said he hoped the latest fire was well and truly extinguished and would not reignite later in the middle of the night when the families were sleeping. Ubaidullah mentioned the strong smell of smoke. “This is very harmful for kids,” he said. “Very, very strong smell and it’s hurting me.” Mohamed added, “It’s very close. I’m very concerned. I hope things get sorted out properly.”

 

Asked if they heard the alleged explosion the other female resident spoke of, Mohamed said, “I believe that those [noises] are maybe the opening [breaking down] the door and everything [by the firefighters]. I don’t think there was an explosion. It’s more like throwing stuff… windows smashing, getting in.”

 

Given that another resident had alleged the fire started in a kitchen, we asked the brothers if they thought it was potentially a gas explosion. Mohamed said, “I have no idea. I don’t think so. The way I assumed the noise…everything I heard was like when fire department were breaking in.”

Asked if to their knowledge, there was anyone inside the home when the fire broke out, Mohamed said, “Yes, there was an elderly lady. I called the owner. The elderly lady lived on the second floor. We notified immediately to the fire department. I’m not sure. I didn’t see her whether she made it or not.”

 

Ubaidullah explained that he was not at home when news of the fire reached him. “My wife actually and my mother-in-law are here [at home],” Ubaidullah said, adding that he told them to stay there. “I’m coming,” he said he told them. Meanwhile, he said his brother didn’t even have time to finish his meal with his family.

 

Another resident said that the affected building where the fire broke out comprised two apartments and that an elderly lady lived alone on the second floor. “My neighbor is very kind,” Mohamed later added of a male neighbor. “I came out there because of the very strong smoke. The water now become reddish color.”

 

We later asked the FDNY if they could confirm if the deceased person had been found on the second floor. The fire official said, “I do not have the means of determining the exact location of the deceased.”

 

Another young woman who a female resident said lived in the affected building was seen crying, and talking on the phone.

 

To view some videos of the scene, click on Video 1, courtesy of Kabir Admed, Video 2 and Video 3, courtesy of Dorca Martinez, and Video 4 by Síle Moloney.

 

Editor’s Note: FDNY officials initially reported having received the first call about the fire at 21.59 p.m. but later clarified that this was a typo and said the first call was received at 21.39 p.m. Also, although fire officials said they received a report of the fire at 3565 Reservoir Oval East, the fire was actually at 3273 Perry Avenue. Our story has been updated to clarify this.