A man was arrested Wednesday for allegedly stealing the stove out of an apartment in the Bronx. He reportedly left the gas on, causing a fiery explosion that killed one person and injured more than a dozen others. <\/p>\n
Law enforcement sources said Samuel Calderon, 55, who did not live at the 17-story building, was arrested on murder, manslaughter, burglary and a number of other charges stemming from the Jan. 24 blast. <\/p>\n
Neighbors reported smelling gas on the top floors of the Bivona Street building shortly before 12:30 a.m. When firefighters responded, they saw people leaning out of windows calling for help as flames engulfed parts of the top floors. <\/p>\n
Chief of Department John Esposito said there was major structural damage to about a dozen apartments and fires in 10 apartments on the 16th and 17th floors.<\/p>\n
Officials said the building had been undergoing renovations and work on the natural gas system had been completed and inspected. The building was formerly run by the New York City Housing Authority, but has been under private management since 2024, city officials said.<\/p>\n
At 12:09 am on Saturday morning, FDNY members were investigating an odor of gas at\u00a03485 Bivonia Street\u00a0in the Bronx. While on scene, there was a gas explosion on the upper floors.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile our units were here investigating the odor of gas on the 15th and 16th floors, we had\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/0HPpRYLMth<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 FDNY (@FDNY) January 24, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n “It\u2019s an incredible tragedy. We\u2019re sending all our thoughts to the families involved,” Leila Bozorg, deputy mayor for housing and planning, said at a Saturday morning news conference. <\/p>\n Mayor Zohran Mamdani said all utilities in the building were shut down, and all 148 apartments vacated. Officials set up a reception center for the displaced residents at a nearby school, and the American Red Cross was there to help provide housing and other needs.<\/p>\n The Red Cross said it had registered more than 100 households and 305 people, including 89 children, for emergency aid by early Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n More than 200 fire and emergency crews worked the scene, according to the fire department.<\/p>\n \u201cThere were injuries. It was a very, very difficult night on a very cold night, which caused even more difficulty,” Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said.<\/p>\n Around half a million New Yorkers live in aging buildings run by the city\u2019s housing authority, known as NYCHA, which is the largest in the nation.<\/p>\n Many of the properties date back to the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.\u00a0In 2019<\/a>, a federal monitor was appointed to address chronic problems like lead paint, mold and lack of heat. When he wrapped his five-year term in 2024, the monitor, Bart Schwartz,\u00a0noted<\/a>\u00a0that the overarching issue for residents remained the \u201cpoor physical state of NYCHA\u2019s buildings.\u201d<\/p>\n In October, a massive brick chimney running 20 stories up the side of a housing authority apartment building in the Bronx\u00a0collapsed after an explosion,<\/a>\u00a0sending tons of debris plummeting to the ground but amazingly not injuring anyone. Officials linked it to a natural gas boiler.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t