Authorities say a gas leak caused an explosion in a group of rowhouse apartments in the Bronx, killing one and injuring eight in the second major disaster to hit that neighborhood’s rental market in two weeks, Reuters reports.
The person killed was a resident of the building, living in the apartment from which the explosion reportedly emanated from. Five of the injured were NYPD officers who rushed into the building to evacuate survivors. “We saved lives today,” Mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer himself, said at a news conference.
Nine days ago, a fire at an apartment building in the Bronx caused the death of 17 people from smoke inhalation.