BUFFALO, N.Y. — Crews have found the body of man in the rubble of a hours fire on Elmwood Avenue.
The fire happened around 2:26 a.m. on Wednesday at 1074 Elmwood Avenue.
The building housed Elmwood Printout and also served as a rooming house.
The initial call reported at least one person was trapped inside.
Heavy fire could be seen coming from house, and the flames also severely damaged an adjacent multi-family home.
Three people were taken to the hospital.
According to fire officials, one of those residents was rescued from the second floor and suffered burns to their hands and feet. Another resident suffered smoke inhalation and had to be intubated.
Of the three men hospitalized, all of whom were residents of the rooming house, two remained in critical condition while the other was stable.
A fourth resident was not home at the time of the fire and is accounted for.
A fifth resident was still unaccounted for until Thursday morning.
Thursday, Elmwood Avenue between Bird Avenue & Forest Avenue will be closed starting at 8 a.m. as police continue the investigation.
Horrible Scene
"I just heard people screaming so I ran up to the front of my house and through my side windows I could see the orange glow," recalled Michael Bernhardt who was rousted from his sleep at around 2:30 this morning. and who lives next door to where the fire broke out.
Many of his belongings had already been packed up for a planned to move to Kansas City just a little over a week from now. His house, which he was hoping to sell, isn't worth much at all right now.
"It is trashed... I mean you can see the sky through the third floor apartment. There's water all through it it's in bad shape".
The structure where the fire broke out is owned by Larry Patti, who for 40 years operated Elmwood Printout out of the front and used the rest as a rooming house.
He decline to speak on camera but said he had six borders.
He identified the one who remained unaccounted for as Curtis Brown, whom he described as being in his mid 50's and in poor health. He said Brown was mostly a shut in with limited mobility, and expressed doubt he could have escaped from his third floor room without help.
Grim Scene
Throughout the day a grim task played out in front of passersby, of an excavator digging through the wreckage and loading it into a tractor trailers… under the watchful eye of a spotter …pausing from time to time to allow a cadaver dog to do its work….and for fire investigators do theirs
"They work hand in hand as we go though the structure," said Buffalo Fire Division Chief Michael Tuberdyke. "Our fire marshals are looking for a cause and origin, as well as a possibility that that there may be a victim inside."
After hauling two tractor trailer loads of debris from the site, the operation was halted until 8 am Thursday. As it is still considered a crime scene, Buffalo police officers will remain posted there overnight.
Neighboring structures on either side of 1074 Elmwood suffered exposure damage.