One person died following a fire on the 3200 block of Kensington Avenue Monday morning.
Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Derrick J.V. Sawyer said the 38-year-old man jumped from a second-story window to escape the flames and landed on the pavement below. He later died from his injuries.
Five people, including a 3-year-old girl, were also injured in the fire. They sustained injuries from smoke inhalation or from jumping from the building, according to the commissioner.
The fire broke out in a business on the first floor of the building near the intersection of East Willard Street around 6:15. Officials said the building did not have working smoke or fire alarms.
The American Red Cross assisted nine people displaced by the fire.
Emergency officials could be seen working on a dog rescued from the building. Red Paw Emergency Relief Team assisted with injured or displaced pets.
The fire was placed under control before 7 a.m.
As officials continue to investigate the cause, both the residents and Bob Mitchell, the building's owner, are speaking out.
Mitchell told NBC10 he paid $4,000 to equip the building with an electric fire alarm system and accused one of the residents of destroying it.
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"There's a red box inside the store," Mitchell said. "The red box controls the whole electronic fire alarm. There are piping and wires that were stripped by one of the tenants."
Mitchell also claims the fire was started on purpose.
"From police and ATF, there were firebombs," he said.
Officials have not confirmed this however.
Calvin Ridgeway, whose sister and niece were injured in the fire, denied Mitchell's allegations.
"I told her [[my sister]] yesterday that she needed to move somewhere else and the place is not safe," Ridgeway said. "Next thing you know, you come here and you find out on the news that your own sister's house burned down."
Alexis Rosado, the father of the 3-year-old girl who was hurt in the blaze, also claimed conditions inside the building were unsafe.
"They were playing with everybody's health in this building," he said.
Beth Grossman, the Chief of Staff of the city's Licenses & Inspections, sent the following statement to NBC10 regarding Mitchell and the properties he owns:
Public property records show that the properties located at 3246 and 3248 Kensington Avenue are both owned by a Robert M. Mitchell. 3246 Kensington Avenue was cited for property maintenance and fire violations in 2007 and a $10,000 fine was assessed against the property by the court. 3248 Kensington Avenue was cited in 2009 for renovations on the first floor performed without a permit, which resulted in a $3000.00 fine, and in 2012 for a hair salon operating without a business privilege license. The last complaint against 3248 was in May 2012 for minor plumbing issues. Both properties had expired Housing Inspection Licenses for one dwelling unit respectively. Unsafe violations will be issued against the properties. After the owner makes completes all required repairs, L+I's Operations Division will inspect the repairs and ensure that the properties comply with zoning and licensing requirements.
With regard to potential violations regarding fire alarms, L+I inspects such in response to complaints and for high-risk occupancy properties, such as high rises, places of special assembly and schools.
