Crime & Safety

Fire Kills 2 In Luxury East Midtown High Rise, NYPD Says

The blaze started in the River House on East 52nd Street, next to the FDR.

MIDTOWN, NY – An early morning fire ripped through an apartment in a luxury Midtown high rise apartment building Saturday, killing two people, NYPD officials said.

The blaze destroyed the apartment at 435 East 52nd St., which is listed as the River House co-op building and is next to the East River, at 5:22 a.m.

Mary Merow, 85, was found severely burned after the fire was put out. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

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Her husband John Merow, 89, was rushed to Cornell Medical Center where he was also pronounced dead.

The cause of the fire is yet to be determined, the NYPD said.

Find out what's happening in Midtown-Hell's Kitchenfor free with the latest updates from Patch.

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