As hours turned to days, it became more evident that the members of the FDNY were not leaving Dongan Avenue before finding a newborn girl who lived in an illegally converted basement apartment with her mother, who was found dead during a massive 4-alarm house fire in Elmhurst on Monday night.
The fast-moving fire broke out at 83-34 Dongan Ave. just before 6:45 p.m. and extended rapidly to the two neighboring homes. Conditions deteriorated rapidly and, when a firefighter fell through a hole that opened on the first floor, the on-site incident commander ordered an evacuation of all members operating in the home. At the height of the fire, the FDNY received intelligence that a woman and child were missing and believed to be in the cellar that rapidly filled with four feet of freezing water and debris from the house as it partially collapsed into the basement. A team of firefighters went down into the cellar through a rear door and found the mother unconscious and unresponsive. Miguelina Alcantara, 34, was later pronounced dead at the scene by EMS.
“They did locate the adult female,” FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito said. “They were unable to locate the child.”
The fire was brought under control at 1:10 a.m., more than six hours after the first 911 call was received. Subsequent searches for the missing baby came up empty. When inspectors from the city’s Department of Buildings returned to the scene on Tuesday to conduct additional assessments on the fire-damaged structures, their forensic engineers issued an emergency order for the full demolition of 83-34 Dongan Ave.
Heavy equipment was brought onto the site on Wednesday, and as debris from the collapse was being cleared, firefighters found the body of Emma Alcantara at around 2 p.m. She was just 17 days old when the tragic 4-alarm fire broke out.
“It’s very important to realize that this entire operation here was very, very dangerous for our firefighters,” Esposito said afterward. “We know the neighborhood, and we know the families are devastated, and you need to know our firefighters are devastated also. Any loss of life takes a very hard toll on our firefighters, and for all the effort they put in here, they did save some lives.”
Three patients remained in critical condition on Wednesday, including a 22-year-old man who suffered burns to most of his body. Five more survivors were injured when they jumped from windows and four firefighters were injured battling the massive blaze. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will determine the cause of death of Miguelina Alcantara and her infant daughter Emma.
DOB records indicate that the most recent 311 complaint at 83-34 Dongan Ave. was from 2022, alleging individuals were living in the basement. Inspectors attempted to make inspections of the premises in 2022 and again in 2023, but were unable to gain access to substantiate the claims. As a rule, DOB inspectors never force their way into a building. After multiple unsuccessful inspection attempts, DOB administratively closed out the complaints.
“I know it’s probably too soon to tell about the cellar, how difficult it is for firefighters when they’re dealing with conversions like that,” Esposito said. “We’ve had it in the past where firefighters have died because the apartments and houses have been divided up and access to egress and fire escapes have been blocked. So that makes it very dangerous for the occupants and our firefighters.”
The American Red Cross registered 14 households, including 40 adults and 7 children, for emergency assistance, including temporary lodging and financial aid. FDNY fire marshals are working to determine the cause of the fatal 4-alarm fire.
