Three-Alarm Fire Torches 20 Apartments in UES Building, Injuring One
The blaze at 160 E. 91st St. began at 12:20 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 27, the FDNY said. It started in the third-floor walls of the eight-story building, and took until 2:30 p.m. to put out.
| 28 Jan 2025 | 06:38
A visit to a famed co-op building at 160 E. 91st St., the day after a three-alarm blaze tore through multiple floors, revealed minimal exterior damage. A total of 20 units were evacuated, however. (
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Firefighters responding to a three-alarm blaze at 160 E. 91st St. on Monday, Jan. 27, which tore through 20 units. (
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A three-alarm fire ripped through multiple floors of an eight-story Upper East Side co-op building on the afternoon of Monday, Jan. 27, the FDNY said.
The blaze at 160 East 91st St. began at around 12:20 p.m., affected 20 units, and took until 2:31 p.m. to extinguish. It began in the walls of the building’s third floors, before spreading upwards all the way into the cockloft, a small attic that separated the eighth floor from the roof. Local residents spotted a group of firefighters battling a burst of flames on the building’s roof. A total of 140 firefighter and EMS personnel responded to the incident, the FDNY noted, and one firefighter was mildly injured.
“This was a labor intensive fire for the Fire Department. We stretched multiple hand lines into the building, and we had to expose fire on every one of those floors by pulling the ceilings and opening up the walls and extinguishing fire,” FDNY Assistant Chief John Sarrocco said. “We have the Red Cross on the scene attending to any of the people that live in those apartments and Fire Marshals are also on the scene, investigating the cause of this fire.”
The Red Cross told East Side Feed that it “has registered five households (six adults) for emergency assistance, including temporary lodging and financial assistance. Additional impacted residents were able to self-relocate with friends and/or family.”
“In coming days, Red Cross caseworkers will meet with these residents to identify any recovery obstacles and help connect them with longer-term recovery resources from government and/or nonprofit partners as needed,” they added. “Any residents impacted by this fire who need help with their recovery and have not already connected with the Red Cross should call 1-877-RED CROSS (877-733-2767) and select Option 1.”