Compactor fire fills Yonkers high-rise with smoke forcing residents to shelter
Section of Riverdale Avenue in Yonkers closed in response to apartment building fire.
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Some residents were forced to shelter in place after a fire filled a Yonkers apartment building with smoke.
The incident happened around 7 a.m. at 80 Riverdale Avenue.
Fire officials say the smoke was traced to the building's compactor room.
The fire started on a lower-level floor and extended slightly up the garbage chute shaft.
Officials say smoke then spread throughout the building, reaching upper floors and filling hallways.
"There was smoke from the first floor up to the sixteenth floor. So, a lot of people were asked to shelter in place. It was quite harrowing at the time," said Assistant Chief Peter Connolly.
One resident on the 16th floor said smoke had already filled the building by the time she evacuated.
Officials say a couple of residents needed EMS for smoke inhalation.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
