Dramatic video shows the moment a deadly explosion engulfed a Bronx hallway after a homeless career criminal allegedly stole a stove from his estranged “baby mama’s” apartment – in hopes of selling it “for a gram of crack,” according to court docs.
The clip – obtained by The Post Thursday – shows a firefighter and a lanky man in a white shirt and black pants standing toward the end of the hallway in the Bivona Street building early Saturday when a fiery blast suddenly erupts near them.
The video is then momentarily obscured by thick smoke that fills the hallway of the NYCHA building, before the view clears and chunks of rubble are shown on the ground.
Samuel Calderon, 55, was arrested Wednesday in connection to the explosion that killed resident Ronald McCallister, 60 – when the 16th floor ceiling collapsed onto him, according to a criminal complaint.
Calderon allegedly entered his “baby mama’s” 13th floor apartment – in violation of an order of protection – and yanked out the stove, sparking a gas leak that traveled up to the 17th floor and caused the blast, prosecutors said.
A 37-year-old man was hospitalized in critical condition after the four-alarm fire, and five others were listed in stable condition, police said.
Calderon fled the scene, and roamed undetected for three days until a keen-eyed cop spotted him picking up mail at the very same building, sources said.
He was charged with murder and manslaughter, both in the second degree, as well as burglary, petit larceny and criminal contempt, prosecutors said.
In his statements to investigators, Calderon admitted he went to the apartment to steal the woman’s stove “and sell it for a gram of crack,” according to the complaint.
“I smelled the gas and heard the hissing sound of gas so I taped a blanket around the hole and left,” he allegedly said. “Yeah, that’s me taking the stove. It’s the same sweater I’m wearing right now.”
Calderon – who has more than 25 prior arrests dating back to 1987 – was last arrested Nov. 3 for allegedly violating an order of protection at the same building, sources said.
The order of protection involving Calderon’s “baby mama” was issued about three months ago, on Oct. 29, prosecutors said.
“I remember the judge telling me not to go near her or her home,” Calderon told investigators.
His last felony arrest was in March of 2022 for a Bronx burglary, and he was also nabbed in 2008 for a Brooklyn burglary, cops said.
He was ordered held without bail during a Thursday appearance before Judge Matthew Grieco on the fatal fire case.
Over 230 first responders from 75 units responded to the apartment blaze as temperatures dropped to the low teens and below around New York City.
“It was a very, very difficult night, on a very cold night, which caused even more difficulty,” FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore told reporters at the time.
“The men and women of the fire department and all the first responders of our department did a terrific job putting these fires out, couldn’t have thanked them more.”
