Officials said residents jumped from upper floors as firefighters battled collapse conditions inside the Queens property.
FLUSHING, N.Y. — Four people, including a 3-year-old boy, were killed Monday after a four-alarm fire tore through a mixed-use building on College Point Boulevard in Flushing, trapping residents, injuring others and forcing a large emergency response in Queens.
The fire broke out just before 12:30 p.m. at a three-story building near Avery and Pople avenues, setting off a rescue effort that quickly grew more dangerous when people leaped from upper floors and part of an interior stairway gave way beneath firefighters. By Monday night, city officials had confirmed four deaths, more than a dozen injuries and a full vacate order for two addresses tied to the damaged property, while investigators worked to determine how the blaze started and whether long-standing building complaints had any role in the scale of the disaster.
Fire officials said the first call came in shortly before 12:30 p.m. for flames at 44-49 College Point Blvd., a property with a ground-floor business and apartments above. Smoke and fire spread through the building as crews arrived, and the response was escalated to four alarms. FDNY Chief of Fire Operations Kevin Woods said three people jumped from the upper floors during the emergency. Another resident trapped on the second floor was brought down by firefighters using a portable ladder. FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore called it “a difficult and tragic day,” saying crews faced punishing conditions while trying to reach victims, knock down the fire and get residents out.
Authorities first announced three deaths at an afternoon briefing, then later confirmed a fourth victim, an adult man, died while being taken to a hospital. The dead included two adults, a child and the fourth adult man, officials said. Police later released details on additional injured civilians treated at Jacobi Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian Queens. Among them were men ages 33, 44, 51 and 59 and women ages 39, 40 and 67, all listed in stable condition by Monday evening. Fire officials also said six firefighters were hurt and taken to area hospitals in stable condition. Two of those firefighters had to be rescued after a stair collapse inside the building. Woods said crews moving from the first floor toward the second became trapped when the stairs gave way beneath them, adding another layer of urgency to an already chaotic operation.
Neighbors described a scene that unfolded with startling speed on a block lined with homes and businesses. Vivian Marie, who lives nearby, said she first smelled smoke and thought her own building might be on fire. She told local television that people soon gathered outside and watched emergency workers perform CPR on badly burned victims in the street. Officials said more than 230 fire and EMS personnel responded. The size of that response reflected both the intensity of the fire and the complexity of rescues in a building where escape routes appeared compromised. At the same time, weather conditions may have made the job harder. Fire officials said strong wind can feed flames and shift conditions rapidly, and city reports Monday noted gusts that topped 40 mph in parts of New York.
The building itself is likely to remain a major focus of the investigation. The Department of Buildings issued a full vacate order for 132-05 Avery Ave. and 44-49 College Point Blvd., and the utility company was called in to shut off gas and electric service. City records cited by officials and local media showed complaints about illegal subdivisions in the building dating back more than a decade. By Monday night, it remained unclear whether those complaints had been resolved, whether interior layouts had changed over time or exactly who was living in all of the units when the fire broke out. The FDNY said the property had five apartments. Officials also said only one household, made up of four adults, had registered for help from the American Red Cross as of Monday evening, suggesting the process of identifying displaced residents was still developing.
The deaths quickly drew a response from City Hall. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in a public statement that the city was mourning four New Yorkers lost in the fire and thanked firefighters and EMS workers who reached the scene within minutes. His statement underscored the scale of the loss, but several important facts remained unsettled by late Monday: investigators had not announced where in the building the fire began, whether smoke detectors were working, whether structural conditions worsened the evacuation and whether any violations will be tied to the property after a full inspection. The Fire Marshal’s office was investigating the cause. Engineers and inspectors were also expected to continue examining the stability of the site after the collapse and extensive fire damage. Those findings could shape any future enforcement steps and determine when, or if, residents may retrieve belongings.
By late Monday, the scene had shifted from active firefighting to investigation, stabilization and victim identification. Fire crews had spent hours containing the blaze, pulling members out after the stair collapse and searching the structure for trapped occupants. What remained was a blackened building, shuttered utilities and a neighborhood trying to absorb the loss. The next major milestone is expected to come as investigators release a preliminary cause and city agencies complete a closer review of the building’s condition and occupancy.
Author note: Last updated March 17, 2026.