QUEENS — Two firefighters were seriously hurt when a large blaze erupted inside a one-story industrial brick building and sent a cloud of smoke over Sunnyside on Wednesday night, officials said.
The fire began inside a woodworking facility at 43-34 37th St., near Queens Boulevard about 7:30 p.m., according to an FDNY spokesman.
QNS 3-ALARM 43-34 37 ST, COMMERCIAL FIRE ON THE 1ST FLR,
— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) August 3, 2016
The blaze quickly escalated, summoning about 198 firefighters to the scene, the spokesman said.
Two firefighters were seriously injured, but listed in stable condition at area hospitals, officials said. Two more were treated for minor injuries.
Firefighters brought the fire under control about 11:22 p.m., officials said.
City officials warned locals to stay indoors and close their windows to avoid inhaling the cloud of smoke that billowed from the industrial blaze.
Passersby expressed their shock over the heavy smoke on social media:
@fdny fire sunnyside pic.twitter.com/6i2zKVEPQB
— Saymyname (@imhungryall) August 3, 2016
Fire on Queens Boulevard and 37th , crazy ! pic.twitter.com/iFQqothT7C
— Gabby (@nochillgabbyy) August 3, 2016
Persaud Jeetendra, who works just a few blocks away from the scene, said he was there Wednesday night when the fire erupted and looked outside after hearing helicopters overhead.
"We just saw a big cloud of smoke, that's it," he said, comparing the smell in the air to that of burning tires. "It was really, really bad."
It was not clear what sparked the blaze or if anyone was inside at the time, an FDNY spokesman said.
City records show the address is home to New York Custom Interior Millwork Corp., a family-run business since 1966 that specializes in creating wood furniture and other fixtures, according to its website.
Attempts to reach the company's owners were not immediately successful.
"I know they make cabinets — I see the wood," said the owner of Gallagher's 2000, a bar across the street, who identified himself as Robert but declined to give his last name. "It's not a good scenario with all the accelera[nts] there."
FDNY crews were still at the scene and had the block closed off Thursday morning, sending firefighters up in a cherry-picker at one point to spray water into the building from above.
The windows of the building were all blown out, and the sidewalks nearby were littered with char. The smell of fire still hung heavy in the air.
Staffers at the Korea Daily newspaper, located around the block from the blaze, were wearing face masks and had a fan running in their office to try to diffuse the fumes.
John Villafane, who works in sales at the paper, said he and his co-workers were periodically exiting the building to escape the smell left over from the smoke.
"We're just going in and out," he said, adding they were grateful the fire department kept the blaze from spreading to their building and others nearby. "We were blessed."
