Three separate Brooklyn fires injure 12 residents over weekend, FDNY investigates

Three separate fires across Brooklyn from Friday night to Saturday morning left 12 residents injured.

The first fire broke inside a compactor chute at 265 Livonia Ave. at NYCHA‘s Tilden Houses in Brownsville just after 6 p.m. on July 26. Firefighters arriving on the scene discovered thick smoke on the 15th and 16th floors of the residential building. The blaze was brought under control within an hour, but left five people with minor injuries. Three were transported to Brookdale University Medical Center for treatment, per the FDNY.

Hours later, firefighters responded to a fire at 405 Williams Ave. in East New York, where a fire had broken out on the fourth floor of a six-story building. Crews deployed three hose-lines to control the fire, which was brought under control at 10:01 p.m. Six residents were treated for minor injuries on the scene.

Firefighters after an early-morning fire at 706 Lefferts Ave. Photo by Lloyd Mitchell

City records show that 405 Williams Ave. has been subject to myriad Department of Buildings and Department of Housing Preservation and Development complaints and violations. Since the start of this year, the building has been slapped with 28 HPD violations for issues from mice and roaches to broken doors, mold, and a broken carbon monoxide detector.

On Saturday morning, just after 9:05 a.m., firefighters responded to a bedroom fire at a large multi-dwelling building at 706 Lefferts Ave. in East Flatbush. Sixty firefighters quickly deployed two hose-lines to extinguish the blaze. The fire, which, per the FDNY, resulted in no injuries, was brought under control at 10:15 a.m. Records show that the building has received several DOB violations and complaints in recent years, though most are related to broken elevators. In June, according to DOB records, the FDNY requested a structural inspection of the building after a driver ran into it in their vehicle.

The FDNY Fire Marshals Office is investigating the causes and origins of the three fires.