FDNY battles 5-alarm Bronx fire but reports only minor injuries

Firefighters Wednesday morning battled a five-alarm blaze that started at a Bronx deli, damaging neighboring small businesses as it raged on for hours.

FDNY officials said 200 first responders came to the scene at W 231st Street and Godwin Avenue in Kingsbridge, where the fire began around 3:30 a.m.

By 7:30 a.m., it had not yet been brought fully under control, according to fire department officials.

“The reason a lot of these are so difficult is, there are multiple ceilings in a lot of these stores and occupancies, multiple ceilings have been put up over time," Assistant Chief Thomas Currao told reporters at the scene Wednesday morning. "It takes a lot of time to try to get at the fire and knock it down."

Currao said one person who lived in a neighboring building was evaluated by EMTs for minor smoke inhalation. No other injuries were reported.

The fire began in Bunny Deli’s Cold Cut City and heavily damaged five nearby businesses, according to FDNY officials.

Videos posted to X by reporters at the scene showed a ladder extended over a strip of stores, including a flower shop, as smoke filled the air. Currao said some of the ladders had to be re-adjusted to tackle hard-to-reach areas where the fire had spread.

Residents were advised to shut their windows to keep out the smoke and fumes.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

This is a developing story and has been updated with new information.