HELL'S KITCHEN — A Thursday morning fire in a West 42nd Street high-rise left six injured as it filled the building with smoke, officials said.
The flames broke out on the second floor of the Silver Towers at 610 W. 42nd St., near 11th Avenue, about 6:37 a.m., awakening sleeping tenants and sending them scrambling, according to the FDNY and residents.
Four civilians and two firefighters suffered minor injuries, an FDNY spokesman said.
The firefighters and one civilian were treated at Bellevue Hospital while the other three people refused medical treatment at the scene, an FDNY spokesman said.
MAN 2-ALARM 610 W 42 ST, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON 2ND FLR NORTH TOWER,
— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) July 7, 2016
"I was sleeping. I woke up hearing fire trucks," said 31st floor resident Mike Bounansour, 48.
"I didn't think much of it, but suddenly the power went off. A neighbor knocked on my door and said, 'It's a fire! You need to get out!'
"My wife and I grabbed what we needed: my backpack, wallets, passports. We went down the stairs."
The residents said firefighters extended a ladder to pull a woman out a window.
"They carted her off. She had an oxygen mask on," Bounansour said.
The smoke became thicker the farther down he and his wife went in the tower, where a one-bedroom apartment can rent for nearly $6,000 a month, Bounansour said.
"The smoke was light gray. Trying to breathe, you could feel it. We didn't mess around. We got out as fast as we could," the tenant added.
About 138 firefighters were still trying to bring the blaze under control as of 9:30 a.m., an FDNY spokesman said.
