Syracuse, NY- On June 20, 2023, at 12:47 a.m., Syracuse Firefighters were alerted by the Onondaga County 911 Center to a possible fire at 601 Teall Ave. Firefighters from Station 9, on Shuart Ave, arrived on the scene in under three minutes. When they arrived they found a two-story apartment building with large volumes fire showing from several windows on the first floor. A signal ‘99’ was transmitted. Due to the large volume of fire, crews were forced to initially attack the fire from the exterior.
Firefighters moved hoses into place and began to extinguish the large volume of flames. Other teams of firefighters began a systematic search of apartments in an attached building at 611 Teall Ave, to alert occupants of the danger. Once the exterior fire was knocked down, crews pushed into the building to continue extinguishing fire and search for trapped occupants. The task of searching multiple apartments on two floors was made even more difficult due to exteme clutter in some locations. Firefighters were able to fully extinguish the fire in approximately 50 minutes. Searches for trapped occupants were negative.
Syracuse Fire investigators were on the scene working to determine the origin and cause of the fire. The portion of the building addressed as 601 Teall sustained extensive fire, smoke, and water damage. A fire wall prevented the majority of fire spread into the adjoining building at 611 Teall Ave. One civilian was injured at the scene. The second-floor occupant jumped from a second-floor window to escape the blaze, prior to fire department arrival. They were transported to a local hospital for evaluation. Their condition and extent of injuries is not known at this time. One firefighter also sustained a minor injury and was transported to a local hospital for evaluation, their injury is not considered serious at this time.
Several occupants were displaced by this fire, they were being assisted by the American Red Cross. A total of 46 fire personnel responded to the scene, including command and support staff. Syracuse Fire Department Ambulance, Syracuse Police, American Medical Response, National Grid, and the American Red Cross also responded to the scene. We thank our partners at The 911 Center, SPD, AMR, National Grid and the Red Cross.
Correction: It was originally reported that there were no working smoke detectors in the building at the time of the fire. New information has come to light indicating smoke detectors were heard sounding in the building when the fire occurred, prior to Fire Department Arrival.