HAMILTON HEIGHTS — An attorney was critically injured when a fire tore through his Manhattan law firm Thursday morning, staff and officials said.
Juan Pablo Vegaromero was in the back of the storefront firm of Dawn M. Florio and Laura M. Miranda at 3604 Broadway, near West 148th Street, when flames erupted there about 12:27 a.m., according to an FDNY spokesman and a paralegal for the firm.
Upstairs neighbor Kimberly Morales, 23, was awoken when her parents shouted "fire!" she said.
"The whole building was engulfed in smoke," Morales said.
MAN ALL HANDS 3604 BROADWAY, MIXED OCCUPANCY FIRE ON 1ST FLR,
— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) July 28, 2016
Morales and her family ran from their fifth-floor home down the stairs and onto the street which was littered with glass from broken windows, she said.
(DNAinfo/Kathleen Culliton)
"It was bad on the second floor, but when we ran outside, we saw smoke pouring out of the law offices," Morales said.
"The firefighters ran in and then they pulled him out. They were doing CPR," she added.
Vegaromero, who was born in Cuba, was treated at Harlem Hospital and listed in critical condition, police said.
Another person refused medical attention at the scene, officials said.
About 60 firefighters put the flames out by 1:27 a.m. but the inside was badly scorched, officials said.
"We've been in business for years. Inside is totally destroyed," said Wendy Bauca, 38.
"Right now, I'm in shock," she added.
MAN ALL HANDS 3604 BROADWAY, MIXED OCCUPANCY FIRE ON 1ST FLR, UNDER CONTROL
— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) July 28, 2016
Fire marshals will determine what sparked the blaze, officials said.
