It was a devastating day here in New York City. One of the deadliest fires in decades has killed at least nineteen people including nine children. Dozens of others have been injured. The massive fire broke out just before noon. It began in a third-floor apartment of a nineteen-story building in Bronx. Investigators believed the cause was a space heater. At least two hundred firefighters responded.

The scenes described to us paint a terrifying picture for the hundreds of people living in this apartment complex. One woman we spoke to says the smoke was so thick, she couldn’t see the steps in front of her. And neighbors say they felt helpless as they watched the tragedy unfold.

Firefighters say they arrived just three minutes after the call went out. New York Fire Commissioner D.N. says the door to that apartment was left open allowing smoke to pour out and filling the rest of the building. The victims were rushed to nearby hospitals. Now this may be the deadliest fire since 1990. That’s when an arsonist set fire to the Happy Land Social Club in the Bronx, eighty-seven people were killed in that blaze.

The latest Covid surge is setting new records, straining hospitals, and more uncertainty. Right now, the US is averaging about seven hundred thousand cases per day. That’s double from the previous peak a year ago.

:::tip arson

• : the willful or malicious burning of property (such as a building) especially with criminal or fraudulent intent. 纵火

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:::tip poise

• : to become drawn up into readiness. 准备

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