By Matt Draper and Leslie Albrecht
DNAinfo Staff
UPPER EAST SIDE — A two-alarm fire ripped through a Turtle Bay apartment building Thursday morning after apparently being sparked in a dry cleaning shop on the ground floor — leaving two people injured, according to the FDNY.
More than 100 firefighters from 25 units raced to the blaze that spread to the dumbwaiter shaft in the building at East 50th Street and First Avenue just before noon.
One firefighter and one resident were hospitalized for smoke inhalation, an FDNY official said.
Marty Wolf, a 73-year-old resident who lives on the second floor, said she smelled smoke just before noon, then saw thick clouds pouring into the hall.
Wolf tried to dial 911, but her phone was dead, she said. She grabbed some cash and fled to a courtyard in the rear of the building.
"I was standing in the courtyard and I saw flames coming out of my kitchen window," Wolf said.
Deputy Chief John Hilley, of Division 3, said the blaze appeared to have started in Ching Cleaning, a dry cleaners inside the building. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Inspectors from Con Ed were called after the smell of gas was detected in the basement, FDNY officials said.
