Fire tears through Brooklyn apartment hours after man found dead

BAY RIDGE, Brooklyn (WABC) -- A fire tore through a Bay Ridge apartment overnight, hours after police responded to the same building for reports of a dead body.

Heavy flames shot out the window of the Shore Road apartment just after 1 a.m. Monday, before firefighters quickly put it under control.

Police had been in the building on Sunday for a man in his 70s who had died.
Neighbors complained of a foul odor for several days before his body was found.He lived alone and was described as a hoarder.

"He had a lot of junk in the house, he's one of those kind of people that don't throw anything away, it was terrible," said tenant Ida Borrino Rodriguez.

It was not clear how long he had been dead, but his death was not considered suspicious.As building management waited for the body to be removed, the fire broke out, and many residents were forced to evacuate.

"We were all very frightened, it was very scary because at first we didn't know, and then we saw the firemen coming up and then they told us go downstairs and that was it," said neighbor Joyce Robliotta.

Fire officials say as many as six apartments in the building sustained water damage.The cause of the fire is under investigation.