Four Dead, Including Child, in Queens Four-Alarm Fire

Four people, including a child, died in a four-alarm fire that swept through a three-story mixed-use building in Flushing, Queens, on Monday afternoon, according to fire officials. The blaze broke out around 12:30 p.m. at 4449 College Point Boulevard, near Avery and Pople avenues, engulfing a ground-floor business and residential apartments on the upper floors.

Firefighters from the New York City Fire Department arrived within four minutes of the initial call and encountered heavy flames on all three levels. The fire, which started in a third-floor unit, spread rapidly through at least five apartments, fueled by strong winds that complicated operations. It took more than 230 firefighters and emergency medical personnel about two hours and 15 minutes to bring the blaze under control, with the scene fully extinguished around 2:45 p.m.

Three victims, including the child identified as a 3-year-old boy, were pronounced dead at the scene after becoming trapped in a second-floor apartment. A fourth person, an adult man, died later at NewYork-Presbyterian Queens Hospital. Officials reported that three people jumped from upper-floor windows in desperate attempts to escape, suffering...