NEW YORK — New York Mayor Eric Adams has revised the death toll from a high-rise fire, saying 17 people were killed, two fewer than originally thought.
Adams says nine adults and eight children died in the fire Sunday in the Bronx. He did not immediately provide a reason for the lower death count.
Doctors are still working to save the lives of several people gravely injured when smoke from a fire knocked them out or trapped them in the Twin Parks apartments on Saturday.
More than 40 people were injured in the fires, according to WABC-TV in New York. Dozens of people were still being treated for their injuries in the hospital Monday, and as many as 13 were in critical condition.
Investigators determined that a malfunctioning electric space heater started the fire in the 19-story building.
The flames damaged only a small part of the building, but smoke escaped through the apartment's open door and turned stairwells into dark, ash-choked horrors.
"This is a horrific, horrific, painful moment for the city of New York, and the impact of this fire is going to really bring a level of just pain and despair in our city," New York City Mayor Eric Adams said, according to CNN.
Sunday's fire in the Bronx is already the city's deadliest in three decades. It came just days after an apartment fire in Philadelphia killed 12 people, including eight children. Officials suspect that fire began when a child accidentally sparked a Christmas tree while playing with a lighter.