NY Daily News – March 04, 2015
by Laura Bult, Ryan Sit, Joseph Stepansky, Denis Slattery
A fire and explosion rocked a building just steps from Columbia University late Tuesday, injuring five people and forcing the evacuation of two Barnard College dorms, authorities and witnesses said.
The two-alarm blaze was reported around 11:30 p.m. in the ground floor of an 11-story building at 600 W. 116th St., according to authorities.
Witnesses reported hearing an explosion from the popular Ollie’s Noodle Shop & Grille adjacent to the dorms on the corner of Broadway.
“I went out on the street and the whole storefront is falling off,” said Barnard student Alice Marsh, 20.
The blast blew the restaurant’s facades on 116th St. and Broadway almost completely off the building. Only loose wires kept the frames tethered to the restaurant.
Marsh said a second blast also shook the dorms.
“There was a second explosion, there was already black smoke coming out of the building. There was smoke and dust,” she said.
The explosion sprinkled charred detritus over snow-covered cars parked along 116th St.
Several firetrucks and engines surrounded the building, which houses Barnard students and is across the street from Columbia’s main entrance.
Fire marshals were on the scene investigating the cause of the blaze. A police source said the fire started in the boiler room in the back of the dorms before it spread into the noodle shop.
The fire was under control by 12:46 a.m., authorities said.
Four firefighters and one civilian were treated for minor injuries at St. Luke’s Hospital, according to FDNY Chief Corrado.
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