By the time the fire was put out around 4:30 p.m., the right side of the house was charred beyond recognition, and some deck boards had burned to the point where they shriveled up.

The fire broke out inside her first-floor apartment on 80th St. near 37th Ave. in Jackson Heights about 5:10 a.m. Thursday.

Thirteen elderly New Yorkers have died following fires this winter over a deadly six-week span in a continuing trend FDNY officials called, “very, very concerning.” The spike in fire deaths among the city’s senior citizens included a 95-year-old Queens grandmother who died along with her great granddaughter,

A spokesperson for the mayor said the timing was not intended to overshadow Mamdani’s announcement just minutes later.

Elon Musk says that the appointment of Lillian Bonsignore, a 31-year veteran of the FDNY, means "people will die."

New York City Mayor -elect Zohran Mamdani has appointed retired Fire Department of New York veteran Lillian Bonsignore as the city’s next FDNY commissioner.