October 17, 1966 in New York history

📝 On This Day 📝

58 years ago on October 17th, 1966

12 members of the FDNY are killed when a burning building collapses, becoming the largest single loss of life in FDNY history until the September 11th attacks

The fire was fueled by flammable paint supplies stored in an art dealer's cellar that had been expanded from 7 East 22nd Street to partially under 6 East 23rd Street, and wooden support beams in the cellar were badly burned by the flames, causing the first floor to collapse, taking the firefighters along with it. The fire took 16 hours to bring under control and damaged the buildings so extensively that they needed to be torn down. Today, a large apartment building wraps around the corner and takes up the spaces where both buildings previously stood.

The 23rd Street Fire on Oct. 17, 1966 via FDNY on Flickr


References:

⏰ AGBC Rewind ⏰

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🌎 World History 🌏

Library of Congress  •  New York Times  •  BBC  •  Wikipedia


🌞 Weather Records 🌞

Record High: 90°F in 1938
Record Low: 33°F in 1886


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