Sixth-Floor Fire Tears Through Bay Ridge Building, Smoke Spreads Through Shore Road Tower

Flames tore through a sixth-floor apartment at 9949 Shore Road in Bay Ridge early Monday, sending smoke pouring from multiple windows of the six-story building as firefighters broke through glass to reach the fire. Citizen video captured by neighbors showed flames bursting out of the sixth-floor window before the fire intensified through a second apartment window nearby.

Crews attempted to contain the flames by breaking through windows as the blaze spread, according to News 12 Brooklyn, which first reported on the fire and captured neighbors' footage of the scene. The outlet reported that smoke poured from several other apartment windows in the building as the fire was fought. News 12 reached out to the FDNY regarding injuries and the cause of the fire, but as of publication, the department had not confirmed whether anyone was hurt or what sparked the blaze.

A Pre-War Building With Dozens of Units

The building at 9949 Shore Road is a six-story pre-war apartment structure built in 1931, containing 48 residential units across roughly 60,822 square feet, according to property records reviewed by PropertyShark. The structure went up along Shore Road following a 1928 zoning change that allowed multi-family apartment buildings on the waterfront corridor after World War I naval barracks were cleared from the area, per historical records from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Before that shift, Shore Road had been lined with grand private villas and estates rather than apartment towers.

The property is owned by Meridian Properties LLC, which acquired the building in July 2021 for $13.8 million from seller FCD Raymond Realty, financing the purchase with a $10 million loan from Signature Bank, according to Multi-Housing News. At the time of that sale, the building held a mix of 32 free-market and 16 rent-regulated units. It remains unclear whether the sixth-floor unit or other apartments will require repairs coordinated through the ownership group.

Open Questions on Cause and Injuries

Neither the cause of the fire nor whether any residents or firefighters were injured has been determined as of Monday morning, with News 12 noting that those questions remain with the FDNY pending its response. It's also unclear whether the city's Department of Buildings will need to issue a vacate order for the damaged sixth floor or units below that may have sustained water or smoke damage. After severe structural fires in New York City apartment buildings, the Department of Buildings typically conducts emergency inspections to determine whether temporary or full vacate orders are needed for affected units, evaluating both fire and water damage as well as egress safety, according to the NYC Council's emergency response guide.

Should residents be displaced, the American Red Cross Greater New York Region typically deploys disaster response teams following major apartment fires to provide temporary lodging, financial assistance, and counseling, with displaced residents generally advised to register within two weeks of the incident. The FDNY units most likely to have responded to a Shore Road high-rise call include Engine Company 242, based at 9219 5th Avenue, and Engine Company 241 and Ladder Company 109, which share a station house at 6630 3rd Avenue, per FDNY company records.

Part of a Pattern in Bay Ridge

Monday's fire adds to a string of recent residential blazes in the neighborhood. In February 2025, a fatal early-morning fire in a four-story building on 80th Street in Bay Ridge killed one resident and critically injured two others, an incident that drew attention to how illegally parked cars blocking hydrants can delay emergency response. And in May, a two-alarm fire at a commercial deli on 3rd Avenue spread into upper-floor apartments and displaced four residents after neighbors reported smelling gas, requiring a multi-agency response from the FDNY, Department of Buildings, and utility providers.

Citywide, FDNY average end-to-end response times for structural fire emergencies — measured from the initial 911 call to first arrival — have run between six and seven minutes in recent fiscal years, according to data from the NYC Mayor's Management Report. Fire casualty rates in New York State have also trended below national figures: U.S. Fire Administration data show the state recorded 14.6 injuries and 1.1 deaths per 1,000 residential structure fires in 2023, compared to national averages of 19.7 injuries and 5.8 deaths per 1,000 fires. As Bay Ridge residents wait for word on what caused Monday's fire, the building's fate — and whether anyone was hurt — remains in the FDNY's hands.