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Worker on Fire Survives Leap From Window After Upper East Side Explosion

By  Julie  Shapiro and Della Hasselle | July 12, 2012 4:34pm | Updated on July 12, 2012 5:53pm

A worker was burned in an explosion at 317 E. 90th St. July 12, 2012, a witness said.
A worker was burned in an explosion at 317 E. 90th St. July 12, 2012, a witness said.
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Vinny F

UPPER EAST SIDE — A worker leaped from the window of a burning Upper East Side building with his clothing aflame after the floor he was laquering caught fire Thursday afternoon, fire officials and a witness said.

Miraculously, the worker at 317 E. 90th St., near First Avenue, was not seriously injured jumping from the first floor window after Good Samaritans sprang into action and helped snuff out the flames.

The man was lacquering the floors at the building, between First and Second avenues, when the chemical he was using exploded about 3:15 p.m. Thursday, according a witness and an FDNY spokeswoman.

The screaming worker threw himself out of an open window in an effort to get help, said Vinny, 41, a superintendent at a building across the street who watched the incident unfold.