Fire sends smoke billowing through Greenwich Village; 19 firefighters hurt

GREENWICH VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) -- The heart of Greenwich Village was choked with smoke on Wednesday night.

Flames broke out in a six-story co-op known as 'The Hamilton' on busy 60 E. 9th Street.

"I couldn't see, so I could barely breathe. I never been inside a smoke capsule like that - my eyes was burning," said Isiah Turman.

Investigators believe the fire started in the kitchen cooking area of a ground floor deli and then traveled undetected up a shaft to the roof.

"They really had their work cut out for them with the amount of fire and smoke they were faced with," said FDNY Commissioner Dan Nigro.

Before long, the fire hit five alarms, and 200 members of the FDNY fought to get ahead of it - and they succeeded, containing the flames to just one wing.

In the end, 19 firefighters were injured, but no residents were hurt. Firefighters also rescued a dog named Finnegan - reuniting him with his frantic owner.