Smoky Wakefield Fire Destroys Shops, Mosque, Injures 10

WPR-1 — Residents of Wakefield make their way through the thick smoke during a fire last Thursday morning that destroyed 11 businesses and a mosque. (Photo by David Greene)

Investigators continue to sift through the ashes from a devastating fire that wiped-out an entire city block, leaving a row of stores and an apartment building in a pile of ash and rubble.

Officials say at least 11 shops were destroyed in the fire that broke out sometime just after 6 a.m. on Thursday, May 2. The fire was officially under control by 9 a.m., but firefighters continued to battle pockets of fire that flared up throughout the rest of the day.

Among the destroyed was a cell phone and check cashing store, a deli, a laundromat and a mosque.

WPR-3 — Wakefield shops lie in ruins after devastating fire. (Photo by David Greene)

Fire officials say the 5-alarm fire started in a garage on East 225th Street and quickly spread to the shops. The bustling White Plains Road and the overhead subway were shut as the billowing black smoke could be seen for miles on the clear spring day.

Officials said 200 firefighters battled the blaze, leaving 11 with minor injuries. An 11-year old girl was also treated for smoke inhalation.

WPR-4 — An FDNY fire marshal surveys the damage after a fire in Wakefield. Officials have yet to determine the cause of the fire. (Photo by David Greene)

admin

Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.