By: Richard L. Smith
Firefighters battled a stubborn three-alarm blaze Friday evening in Paterson that spread through multiple residential buildings and sent at least two firefighters to the hospital.
According to preliminary information, crews were dispatched to 53 East 16th Street shortly after 6 p.m. for a reported fire in a 2½-story wood-frame dwelling.
Upon arrival, commanders reported a working fire that quickly escalated to a second alarm as flames extended to a neighboring structure.
As conditions worsened, incident commanders transmitted a third alarm after reporting fire involvement in three 2½-story frame dwellings.
During firefighting operations, emergency medical personnel transported one firefighter suffering from a non-fire-related illness.
A short time later, a second firefighter was treated and transported by ALS to St. Joseph’s University Medical Center with injuries that were reported to be non-life-threatening.
The extent of damage to the homes was not immediately known, and no civilian injuries were reported in the preliminary dispatch information.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by Paterson fire officials.