Gregory Fernandez (left); parked cars in New York City.Photo:Gregory Fernandez/Facebook; FDNY
Gregory Fernandez/Facebook; FDNY
New York City’s fire commissioner is calling on drivers to move their parked cars in front of fire hydrants after a blaze in a Brooklyn neighborhood last weekend claimed the life of one person and sent two other people to the hospital.
“I’m begging New Yorkers in all five boroughs: Please do not leave your cars on hydrants,” New York City Fire Commissioner Robert Tucker said ata press briefingon Sunday, Feb. 9. “Cars parked on hydrants are part of the reason we have the outcome that we have here today — this is a fatal fire, and there’s no doubt that the cars that were parked on the hydrants have slowed down our members from engaging in firefighting tactics.”
Fire officials said they responded on the morning of Feb. 9 to a multiple-dwelling fire in the Bay Ridge section of Brooklyn. When they arrived, units discovered fire coming out of a window from the building’s third floor.
Upon entry, firefighters found two civilians inside the doorway, said officials. Overall, three people were taken to local hospitals where one of them was pronounced dead.
In a post onFacebook, Darlene and Jason Fernandez, who referred to the victim as their nephew, wrote, “RIP Gregory Nelson Fernandez. I’m still in shock, numb and in denial. I can’t believe [you’re] gone. You will be missed nephew. Until we meet again. 😔🙏💔Please keep his wife and 2-year-old in your prayers. They are still in the hospital in a coma. There was a fire in their apartment building in Brooklyn, NY.”
Diksha Bagade was able to escape the building with her roommate, telling ABC affiliateWABC: “The smoke was literally coming from underneath the floor, and then we were both like ‘we have to get out.”
The FDNY shared images of two parked cars in front of fire hydrants following a deadly blaze in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, on Feb. 9, 2025.FDNY
FDNY
Fernandez lived with his wife and children in the apartment, theNew York Daily Newsreported. Neighbors said Fernandez was a Navy veteran who worked for the Veterans Health Administration (VHA).
John O’Keefe, a neighbor, said that Fernandez was excited about his upcoming promotion and that the family was planning to buy a home.
“He was going to be in charge of the (VHA) East Coast of prosthetics, in the prosthetics department. He was going to have a big job coming up,” O’Keefe told theDaily News.
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In a Feb. 9post on X, the New York City Fire Department shared a photo of two cars that it said blocked the closest fire hydrants as firefighters responded to the Feb. 9 morning blaze.
“Keeping fire hydrants unobstructed helps firefighters respond quickly,” the department wrote, adding that New Yorkers should call 911 if they see a blocked or improperly opened hydrant.
At the press briefing, Tucker emphasized how “seconds count” in this type of emergency response.
Gregory Fernandez Sr., the victim’s father, described what happened as “horrible.”
“That’s like a crime,” he said, per theDaily News. ”People are dying because the fire department can’t assist because you park your car in front of a hydrant. That should be a criminal offense in my eyes. People die over that.”
source: people.com
