2 injured in fire on NYC hospital’s roof

At least two people have been injured in a large fire that erupted from the roof of a New York City hospital Friday evening, with authorities still investigating the cause. 

The New York City Fire Department (FDNY) told The Hill that it first received a report of flames coming from St. John’s Episcopal Hospital in Queens around 5:15 p.m.

Videos captured by residents in the surrounding neighborhood and shared on social media showed a massive cloud of black smoke coming from the top of the building, setting off two fire alarms. 

More than 100 firefighters responded to a two-alarm fire at St Johns Episcopal Hospital in Queens, New York, on Friday. No injuries were reported at the time of the fire. pic.twitter.com/l0DxRTIlqE

— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 10, 2021

#BREAKING – HOSPITAL ON FIRE: 2 alarm fire at St John’s hospital in Far Rockaway, Queens, at 327 Beach 19 Street. pic.twitter.com/3927awnjAX

— Moshe Schwartz (@YWNReporter) September 10, 2021

FDNY said that more than 100 firefighters arrived at the scene to put out the blaze. The fire was declared under control just before 7 p.m.

The department said that there were two “minor” injuries as a result of the fire, which officials said remains under investigation by FDNY fire marshals. 

FDNY said that patients and staff in several hospital departments, including the emergency room, evacuated as the fire broke out, while others sheltered in place. 

Donovan Richards, the Queens borough president, told The New York Times that the fire was on the rooftop, with some water damage reported on the 11th floor of the hospital building. 

He added that the hospital had been able to resume operations later in the evening after firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze, though some patients had been taken to other nearby hospitals out of an abundance of caution. 

According to the Times, St. John’s Episcopal is an independent facility that contains a total of 257 beds, and is the sole medical center providing emergency and ambulatory medical services to Queens’ Rockaway peninsula.