The FDNY slapped a woman with a $4,000 fine for having her car parked in front of a hydrant when a deadly Bronx fire broke out — marking the first time the department issued a criminal summons for the infraction.
A red sedan was illegally parked in front of a fire hydrant on Feb. 12, slowing firefighters’ response as they battled a three-alarm blaze that broke out in a Buddhist temple complex on Anthony Avenue in Tremont.
The inferno, which was sparked by a space heater, killed two people, a monk and a temple visitor.
Officials said the car blocked the hydrant that was closest to the building. Photos from the scene showed a fire hose snaked around several cars to reach the water source on the tightly packed street.
“We’re not supposed to do it but where else am I going to park?” the vehicle owner told ABC 7 at the time. “You can’t double park in these streets, these streets are small.”
Her car was booted days earlier for illegally taking up the spot and she didn’t remove it by the time the fire broke out, according to reports.
FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker said the Bureau of Fire Prevention took “decisive action” following the fatal fire.
“I hope this significant fine sends a clear message to New Yorkers: Don’t block a fire hydrant,” Tucker said in a statement Friday.
“Seconds count in an emergency, and blocking a fire hydrant is a selfish decision that can kill people and endanger FDNY members as they work to save residents,” he added.
The hefty fine was given under the NYC Fire Code that makes it illegal to render fire hydrants inaccessible or inoperable, and will require a court appearance.
Fines for parking within 15 feet of a hydrant previously started at $115.
The fatal blaze on Anthony Avenue was the second time in three days in which a fire hydrant was blocked by an illegally parked vehicle.
On Feb. 9, two cars blocked the two closest hydrants at a fire in Bay Ridge that killed a man and injured a woman and a 2-year-old boy.
Complaints of parked cars blocking fire hydrants skyrocketed in recent years, from 64,346 in 2020 to 134,377 in 2023, prompting legislation to impose harsher penalties and automatic summonses.
