Bronx apartment fire kills at least 19, including 9 children

At least 19 people, including 9 children, died in a fire in a Bronx apartment building Sunday morning, an anonymous New York City official told The New York Times.

The fire has been described as one of the worst in the city in more than 30 years. The five-alarm fire began just before 11 a.m. in a 19-story building on East 181st Street.

Firefighters arrived within three minutes after the initial call, but smoke had already engulfed the building, The Times reports.

"The smoke conditions in this building were unprecedented,” Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said, adding that firefighters found victims "on every floor."

“The numbers are horrific,” Mayor Eric Adams said on Sunday, adding: “This is going to be one of the worst fires that we have witnessed during modern times.”