ATF National Response Team Deploying to New York To Support Deadly Residential Fire Investigation

NEW YORK - The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives New York Field Division requested ATF's National Response Team to assist with the joint investigation of a devastating fatal fire in New York City that killed 17 people on Jan. 9.

The Fire Department of the City of New York, the New York City Police Department, and the ATF/FDNY/NYPD Arson-Explosives Task Force investigated the scene and believe a faulty space heater was a potential cause of the fire.

"The ATF New York Field Division is committed to using every resource at our disposal to assist our partners in determining the cause of this devastating fire," said Special Agent in Charge John DeVito, ATF New York Field Division. "Determining the precise cause of the fire will aid in preventing future tragedies."

The ATF Fire Research Lab was requested to analyze the space heater and assist in the documentation of the fire dynamics of the fire spread throughout the structure.

Investigators determined Wednesday several apartments as well as corridors in the structure need to be scanned using the NRT's unique scanning equipment for accurate fire models to be completed by the fire lab.
NRT members will travel to New York today to process and scan the scene to collect the needed data for further investigation and analysis.

NRT provides an immediate and sustained nationwide response capability, typically deploying within 24 hours of notification, with state-of-the-art equipment and highly qualified ATF personnel specializing in fire origin and cause determination.

Past NRT activations include such incidents as an explosion in West Texas that killed 14 people in 2013; a fire that destroyed the Beaufort County Black Chamber of Commerce; a commercial fire in Charleston, South Carolina, that killed nine firefighters in 2007; and national-level incidents such as the 9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon and the Oklahoma City bombing.

This is the 6th NRT activation this fiscal year and the 881st since the inception of the NRT in 1978.

ATF is the federal agency with jurisdiction for investigating fires and crimes of arson. More information on ATF can be found at www.atf.gov.

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