Eastchester House Fire

[tbendick 27]

Eastchester House Fire Photos

67 Tuckahoe Ave

02/02/2004

Photos by Thomas J. Bendick of Nycfire.net

Eastchester house fire hurts 10, routs family

By BILL HUGHES  

THE JOURNAL NEWS  

(Original publication: February 3, 2004)

EASTCHESTER — Three residents and seven firefighters were hospitalized after a midday fire gutted two floors of a three-story house on Tuckahoe Avenue, leaving six elderly siblings homeless the day before their sister's funeral.  

Eastchester Fire Chief Keith Fennelly said two firefighters suffered first- and second-degree burns to their heads and necks while rescuing the four sisters and two brothers of the Conte family, who were burned out of the home they shared in the tightknit Italian-American neighborhood where they grew up.  

One of the brothers, Lou Conte, also suffered first- and second-degree burns on his arms, legs and chest. The family was making preparations for the funeral of their sister Rose, who died last week at age 79 and whose burial is today.  

"The guys had to get in there before the lines were even stretched, and the fire was backing down on them as they were effecting the rescue," Fennelly said. "They were burned crawling on the stairway as they were helping one of the residents out of the building."  

Gilda Conte said she heard her brother Ralph yelling from an upstairs bedroom in their home at 67 Tuckahoe Ave. shortly after noon, and rushed up the stairs to see what was wrong.  

"I opened the door and the whole room was filled with smoke, I couldn't see anything," she said. "I just heard Ralph screaming, 'I can't breathe, I can't breathe.' "  

Lou Conte was taking a shower when the fire broke out. Firefighters pulled him from the burning building without any clothes on and he was then rushed by ambulance to the burn unit at Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx.  

Ralph Conte, his sister Grace Conte and the seven injured firefighters were taken to Lawrence Hospital Center in Bronxville.  

Fennelly said that, in addition to the two with serious burns, five firefighters suffered a variety of injuries, including lesser burns, heat exhaustion and injuries related to slipping and falling on the snow and ice around the building.  

"These guys did a tremendous job saving the lives of these six people," Fennelly said. "I'm proud to be their chief."  

The cause of the fire, which began in a second-floor bedroom, was under investigation.  

The three sisters who were rescued and unharmed were taken into the home of their next-door neighbor, Frank Marocco, who paced nervously back and forth across his front porch, watching firefighters battle the blaze.  

"I heard the sirens and came out here and I couldn't believe all the smoke that was pouring out of there," Marocco said. "I thought for sure my house was going to burn down, too."  

Marocco's sister, Edith Conese, said the Conte family was a large one, with 12 children living in a house built by their father more than 70 years ago.  

"Their mother lived to be 103," Conese said. "They were a very close family and three of the sisters were teachers in Eastchester and Tuckahoe."  

Gilda Conte said the family recently spent more than $20,000 to replace the roof shingles and several windows, all of which were destroyed yesterday.  

Linda Martin, a spokeswoman for the Westchester chapter of the American Red Cross, said food, shelter, clothing and grief counseling would be offered to the family.  

"It's like a double tragedy for them," Martin said. "They had a fire today and a funeral tomorrow."  

Reach Bill Hughes at whughes@thejournalnews.com or 914-694-3511.Reach Bill Hughes at whughes@thejournalnews.com or 914-694-3511.