3 Dead, 3 Injured After Fire Breaks Out In East Elmhurst Home

EAST ELMHURST, QUEENS — Two men and a six-year-old girl are dead after a fire Wednesday burned through an East Elmhurst home and trapped them inside, according to the FDNY.

A 35-year-old woman and a 10-month-old boy who suffered burn and smoke injuries from the fire are at Weill Cornell Hospital's burn center in extremely critical condition, officials said Wednesday night.

"It’s quite unusual at that time in the afternoon to have a fire trap five occupants in a private dwelling," FDNY Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said.

A third victim suffered minor injuries, according to City Council Member Francisco Moya. Officials had not released the names of the five victims as of Thursday morning.

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Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire, which broke out just after 4 p.m. in a two-story home at 23-49 93rd St. in Queens. They have deemed the area a crime scene, Moya said.

Sources told PIX11 that one of the men who died had started the blaze by pouring gasoline in the second-floor kitchen, then lighting it on fire.

The building's owner, Rafelina Moreno, told the New York Daily News: "I tried to help somebody and look how they repaid me. They burned my home." She did not elaborate.

A resident on the first floor of the two-story home heard a smoke alarm go off and called 911, FDNY officials said.

Firefighters got to the scene within minutes and rushed to rescue the three trapped individuals from the blazing building, but the victims succumbed to their injuries.

A 23-year-old man and the six-year-old girl died on the scene and a 76-year-old man went to a local hospital, where he died.

It took more than 100 firefighters to battle the blaze, according to an FDNY spokesperson.

The FDNY Fire Marshal will determine how the fire started. An investigation is ongoing.