A ferocious fire burned through a row of over half a dozen stores in Jackson Heights for nearly six hours from late Thursday night until early Friday morning.
The FDNY first got a call around the blaze inside the basement of Prince Kebab & Chinese Restaurant, located at 37-56 74th St., around 10:50 p.m., on Thursday, March 4, according to authorities. Responding units arrived about four minutes later to find the fire quickly spreading throughout the entire restaurant.
The fire then began to spread to six occupancies structurally connected to the eatery. The fire department called in more units as the blaze was upgraded to a four-alarm fire, prompting response from 168 firefighters.
“I have never seen a fire spread with so much speed and face,” said Chris Anderson, who happened to witness the fire. “I hope it doesn’t wipe out the block of business.”
Area residents worried about the effect of the smoke on the community.
“This is unbelievable. The smoke isn’t good for me or my family,” said Devi Singh.
The FDNY got the fire under control around 4:10 a.m., according to the authorities. Seven firefighters suffered minor injuries in the flames and were transported to local hospitals in stable condition.
Additional reporting by Lloyd Mitchell.
