8 people injured in quick fire, matches possible cause

(Clinton Hill-WABC, June 8, 2007) (WABC) -- A flash fire injured at least eight people, four of them critically, in the Clinton Hill section of Brooklyn.

At noontime fire investigators say it Looks the fire was possible caused by children playing matches.

Newscopter Seven was live over the scene.

This all happened when the fire broke out in 446 Willoughby Avenue just before 6 a.m. this morning Firefighters pulled badly burned victims out of the row home on stretchers.

Eyewitness News has learned eight injuries were reported in the fire, four of them critical. Three of the critical injuries were children, their ages ranging from two to seven years old. One, a five-year-old boy, sustained second-degree burns.

Neighbors say they are just heartbroken, including the one who tried to save the family.

"I felt bad, so I fell down to my knees. I tried, I tried real hard," said one neighbor involved in rescue efforts.

Officials say a 28-year-old woman also sustained second-degree burns. Many of the victims were from the same family.

Two of those critically hurt were taken to Kings County Hospital and two were taken to Woodhull Hospital.

According to fire officials three other people in the building suffered minor smoke-related injuries trying to escape the fire from rooms on the upper floors, one firefighter also suffered minor injuries.

The fire was quickly put under control. The cause is under investigation.

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