Syracuse, NY- On October 26, 2023, at 7:14 p.m., Syracuse Firefighters were alerted by the Onondaga County 911 center to a reported possible structure fire in the area of James Street near the intersection of North Townsend Street. Firefighters from Station 1, on S. State Street, arrived on the scene just over two and a half minutes later to find smoke and fire showing from a second-floor window at 477 James Street. 477 James St. is a large, three-story apartment building. Although the building was listed as vacant, there were reports from bystanders that people may still be inside. A signal ‘99’ was transmitted, and crews initiated an aggressive interior fire attack.
Boards covered the main entrance at the front of the building. As teams of firefighters worked to remove the boards and gain entry, other firefighters prepared to drag hoses into the building and search for trapped occupants. Once they had gained entry, crews making their way to the second floor encountered heavy smoke and heat, and at least one person fleeing the building. The person was escorted out of the building by firefighters and was evaluated by ambulance crews at the scene for smoke inhalation. With reports of additional victims possibly trapped, teams of firefighters performed systematic searches of the entire building, an exhausting effort, while the hose crews battled the flames. Fire crews were able to contain the bulk of the fire to a second-floor apartment, the main body of flames was knocked down in a little under 20 minutes. No additional victims were located. Crews continued to search for fire spread but found none. The fire was declared out after approximately 50 minutes.
Syracuse Fire Investigators were on the scene working to determine the origin and cause of the fire. The building sustained heavy fire damage in at least one second floor apartment, as well as fire, smoke, and water damage in several other parts of the building. There were no injuries reported to civilians or to fire personnel. The one person evaluated by ambulance crews at the scene did not require medical care.
A total of 50 fire personnel responded to this incident, including command and support staff. Syracuse Fire Department Ambulance, Syracuse Police, American Medical Response, and National Grid also responded to the scene. We thank our partners at the 911 Center, SPD, AMR, and National Grid.