Lithium-ion batteries found at scene of Bronx house fire, parked car blocked hydrant
SOUNDVIEW, the Bronx (WABC) -- Fire ripped through a cluttered home in the Bronx early Monday, where firefighters discovered a batch of lithium-ion batteries.
There were no injuries in the fire, which broke out on Fteley Avenue in the Soundview section just before 4 a.m.
Firefighters secured numerous lithium-ion batteries, although what role if any they played in the blaze is unknown. The cause of the fire remains unknown.
A mother and her three children, one with special needs, were displaced by the fire.
Dominique Harrigan says she and her siblings were heading to bed when they saw flames in their apartment. They lived in a second-floor apartment with their 10 cats.
The mother's son said that just one cat survived.
"We were just about to go to sleep and luckily my mom had woken me up and we saw that the fire had started from the living room and it started spreading to me and my brother's room," he said. "Unfortunately, the majority of our cats, they did end up passing away. This is the only cat that we have."
"I woke up from the flames and I started choking and I ran back to the kitchen and my mother started screaming to get out of the house so, I couldn't think straight so I just ran out of the house," his sister, Nikeylah Williams said.
The family had lived in the building for 15 years and the mother said that they did not own any lithium-ion batteries.
Firefighters told Eyewitness News they encountered challenges, including cluttered conditions inside the building, and a parked car blocking the closest fire hydrant, forcing them to run lines from the next block. That vehicle received a parking ticket.
The Red Cross says it's helping with temporary lodging.
"We don't know what we will do after that," Harrigan said. "We don't have identification. We don't have anything."
Harrigan is asking for support, and so far, the community has stepped up to donate items like clothes and cat food.
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