Epic East Village Fire Delivers on Realtor's Promises

There were no deaths or serious injuries from that spectacular four alarm fire that engulfed the roof a high-priced East Village condo last night. (A 1400 square foot, 2 bedroom apartment in the building went for $1,795,000 according to Streeteasy, and the sales pitch promises potential buyers that the apartment will redefine what it means to have "a roof over your head.") One witness to yesterday's inferno, Parvez Ahmed, the owner of nearby burger joint Munchies, tells the Post, "It was just like a small barbecue fire, 45 minutes before the actual fire. Then there was an explosion and the whole building was engulfed."

Officials say the fire was contained by 6 p.m., and the cause is under investigation, but residents speculate that the blaze started on the roof, where construction workers were performing renovations. An entire block of Houston Street was closed off between Avenue A and Avenue B while 138 firefighters battled the blaze. Eight firefighters suffered minor injuries, including smoke inhalation and heat exhaustion.

One four legged resident, a 9-year-old Boston terrier named Oreo, was rescued from a fourth floor apartment after her owner returned home to find the roof ablaze. The pet's owner, Stefanie Smentek, tells the Times she had a hard time at first getting anyone to save Oreo. "I told a lot of firefighters, and I got yelled at by a lot of cops," Smentek says. But eventually one awesome firefighter agreed to help her, "and returned minutes later and handed her Oreo, his leash and a cup of water."

Below, for the firebugs, more video of the fire, via The Lo-Down: