Star Ledger: Seven hurt in Newark fire
A four-story Newark apartment building caught fire this afternoon, injuring seven people inside – including an elderly couple rescued by an off-duty fire chief who ran into the building, authorities said.The two-alarm blaze at 69 Broadway started in a second-floor apartment at about 4:20 p.m., and quickly spread to the other floors, authorities said. Seven people who were inside the building suffered smoke inhalation; three were taken to University Hospital while four others were treated at the scene, authorities said.
An elderly couple living on the top floor escaped more serious injury when off-duty Lyndhurst Fire Chief Paul Horvath drove by the building and spotted the fire, authorities said. Horvath, 51, ran inside and found them upstairs, oblivious to the fire, authorities said. The 30-year firefighting veteran kept them calm until Newark firefighters could execute a ladder rescue about five minutes later, authorities said.
“I think he played a pivotal role,” Newark Fire Director Dave Giordano said. “Without his help, we may have had loss of life, or people would’ve been critically injured.”
7Online has a video interview with Horvath, the off-duty fire chief from Lyndhurst who ran into the burning building and saved several people: Off-duty fire chief to the rescue in Newark fire.
Paul Horvath, an off-duty Lyndhurst fire chief, was driving down the street about 4:30 Tuesday afternoon when he saw flames shooting out of the four-story building and responded. He saw no firemen in sight.He could have kept driving, but he didn’t. Instead, he ran inside without any protective gear.
“I kicked the doors in the lower apartments and there was no one in them,” he said.
And again without any safety equipment he climbed the stairs looking for people who might be trapped inside the burning building.
“When I got up to the fourth floor … I saw two elderly people on the fourth floor … I just kept the door closed. I got to the window and let the firemen know I was up there,” Horvath said.
Eight families were left homeless in the fire, and 10 people were injured—none of them seriously.
If Horvath hadn’t come by, it might have been a whole lot worse.
“He kept them calm waiting for the Newark firefighters to get here and to exit the building. I would say without his part here, there may have been loss of life here,” said Newark Fire Director Dave Giordano.