12 Hurt, Over 200 Firefighters Respond To Brooklyn Gym Fire: FDNY

BROOKLYN, NY — A dozen people were hurt after a five-alarm fire erupted at a Boerum hill building Monday morning, spewing smoke into the neighborhood as hundreds of firefighters battled the blaze.

The fire broke out at about 10:30 a.m. on the second floor of 96 Boerum Place, where people were reportedly living, and quickly spread to the roof of the building, prompting more than 200 firefighters and first responders to rush to battle the blaze, according to the FDNY.

"It's a stubborn fire," said Acting Chief of Department John Hodgens. "The roof was used for some type of tennis court with a foam insulation, and once that starts burning it's difficult to extinguish."

Videos uploaded to Citizen and Twitter during the blaze show smoke billowing out of top of the building in thick plumes, to the point that the city's Emergency Management office warned neighbors to shut their windows and expect traffic delays in the area.

After three hours, fire fighters finally got the blaze under control, the FDNY said, but a dozen people were hurt in the process, including three civilians, who were treated on the scene, and nine fire fighters, who were taken to nearby hospitals.

Hodgens said that people who live on the second floor of the building won't be able to go into their apartments, because firefighters still need to open up the ceilings on the second floor to fully extinguish the blaze.

"We will have to work with them and get them help and get them Red Cross for housing," he said of people reportedly living in the building.

The building, which is on the corner of Boerum Place and Pacific Street, has ten apartments on the second floor and a commercial space on the ground floor.

Until last year 96 Boerum Place was a New York Sports Club, and it recently reopened as a UFC FIT gym on the ground floor.

Fire officials did not specify the cause of the fire, noting that the case is under investigation by the Fire Marshall.

Correction: Kayla Levy's editor Kathleen Culliton inserted a photo into this story which she believed depicted Monday's fire, but had been taken days previously. She apologies profusely to the photographer, the reporter and our readers for the error.