Wheelchair-bound Sunnyside man killed in apartment building fire that left his roommate critically injured: FDNY (original) (raw)

A man was killed and another critically injured during an apartment house fire in Sunnyside on June 1.

Photo via Citizen

A man who was confined to a wheelchair was killed and his roommate was critically injured during an early morning fire in an apartment building on Queens Boulevard in Sunnyside early Monday morning.

The FDNY received a call just before 2:39 a.m. of fire and smoke conditions on the second floor of a five-story residential building at 45-08 40th St. and extended into the third floor.

The view from across Queens Boulevard showed some of the units on the other side of the 40th Street-Lowery Street subway station, where 7 train service was not suspended, according to the MTA. Photo via Citizen

The FDNY dispatched 21 units to the scene between 47th Avenue and Queens Boulevard with 79 firefighters and EMS personnel. Two civilians were rushed by EMS to Elmhurst Hospital, where they were listed in critical condition, according to authorities. Lifelong Sunnysider George Gleixner, 61, succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead a short while later. He had recently lost his mobility and was wheelchair-bound. His 60-year-old roommate was listed in critical condition, and he has not been identified.

One firefighter was transported to New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition with non-life-threatening injuries, according to authorities.

The blaze was brought under control at 3:21 a.m. and FDNY fire marshals are working to determine the cause of the fire. The building is directly across Queens Boulevard from the 40th Street-Lowery Street subway station, but 7 train service was not impacted by the heavy smoke conditions, according to an MTA spokesperson.