Two people suffered injuries after a fire raced through a three-story brick apartment building in Brooklyn on Saturday night, fire officials said.
Battling this blaze, however, proved challenging for firefighters as they attempted to maintain a safe distance from civilians and even other rescuers amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Firefighters responded to a call of a first floor fire at 691 Quincy St. in Bedford-Stuyvesant at about 10 p.m. on March 21. Heavy smoke could be seen billowing from the first floor into the second floor of the building, which was said to be jammed with debris and several bottles of natural gas.
Nearly 50 firefighters and EMS personnel were called to the scene.
One person had to be treated at Interfaith Medical Center for smoke inhalation she suffered while fleeing the burning building. A second man was treated at the scene for minor injuries.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known and is under investigation by fire marshals, FDNY officials said.
Firefighters have been careful to maintain distance from civilians and about 30 firefighters are currently quarantined in the city. Last week, a fire captain in Coney Island was diagnosed with COVID-19.
