Last night, 198 firefighters responded to a fire in a Nolita building that grew from three alarms to five alarms. One person was found dead—the victim's face was "burned beyond recognition"—and now it turns out the fire was intentionally set.
Wei Chu Wu, 45, was arrested last night. The Post reports that he "allegedly told a roommate, 'We’re all gonna die,' after setting ablaze the kitchen of his apartment on the second floor of 41 Spring Street." According to the Daily News, neighbors heard Wu tell his wife, “I’m going to light this fire and die with you" before lighting the fire in the hall outside a second floor apartment.
Wu had been fighting with his wife (who is described as "the mother of his child" by the NY Times)—apparently he had been unemployed for months and neighbors said that their fights were common. The Times adds that he "fought with first responders, trying to stop them as they tried to battle the blaze, the police said." Wu's wife and child are in good condition.
FDNY received a call about the fire at 6:42 p.m., and the blaze quickly spread to the rest of the building. FDNY Chief of Operations James Esposito said, “The fire encompassed all of the floors. The building is essentially destroyed. It was an extremely intense operation." The fire destroyed the stairwell from the second to fifth floor. The fire reached five alarms and was under control by 9:19 p.m. Here are some videos:
The NYPD said of the victim who was found dead on a fire escape, "We're working on the premise that the victim was a resident of the building unrelated to the dispute." Two other civilians suffered minor injuries, as did six firefighters.
