21 Suffer Smoke Inhalation, Minor Injuries in Central Harlem High-Rise Fire

HARLEM, NY — A fire in a trash compactor on the 10th floor of a building in the Martin Luther King Jr. Towers caused almost two dozen injuries Monday evening.

The FDNY responded to the two-alarm blaze at about 7 p.m., and while the fire was brought under control in about an hour, there was a heavy smoke condition throughout the high-rise apartment building.

A fire official said 21 people were injured, including seven firefighters, but all were minor. Most suffered from smoke inhalation, and a few had "bumps and bruises," a fire department spokesman said.

The Martin Luther King Jr. Towers are located in central Harlem on Fifth Avenue between 112th and 115th streets.

Smoke could be seen billowing into the air over Harlem on Monday evening.

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