A tragic fire killed a 17-month-old boy and his heroic eight-year-old brother, who ran back into their Springfield Gardens home to save his younger brother. The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) was able to rescue five other family members who were in the house when the fire began.
About 60 firefighters responded to the scene at 141-45 182nd Street, to put out the one alarm fire, which broke out shortly after 9 a.m. on Thursday, June 17. Relatives and friends are mourning the loss of Daniel Wilson, 17 months, and Tyanthonthy Duckette, 8 – whom everyone is declaring a hero.
“I couldn’t believe it, the eight year old going back in for another sibling,” said Shirley Guerrier, a nearby resident whose own home recently burned down. “The boy is a hero, he ran back in to save another child.”
The FDNY received the call for the fire at 9:20 a.m., and they were on scene three minutes later.
“Fire fighters were met with flames at front door,” said Frank Dwyer, an FDNY spokesperson. “Fire was on [the] bottom floor and extended toward the front.”
The Fire Marshals are looking at the rear bedroom where the fire took place and a lighting fixture that may have come in contact with combustible material.
An older woman, who lives two houses down from house that caught on fire, said that she was in her bedroom when it happened. She heard a person screaming “get out, get out,” and then heard a fire truck come down the street minutes later.
Less than 24 hours before the fire broke out, local elected officials stood outside a fire house in Far Rockaway talking about the importance of keeping fire houses open in the wake of impending budget cuts that are threatening to close 20 houses throughout the city.
“This horrifying incident exposes a hard truth; we have far too few firehouses right now,” said City Councilmember James Sanders, who represents Springfield Gardens. “Our most vulnerable, the children and elderly, cannot afford these cuts. Their lives will be the first on the line.”
