8-year-old girl jumps from 6th-floor balcony to escape fire in NYC apartment

NEW YORK — An 8-year-old girl is safe after jumping from the sixth-floor balcony of her New York City apartment after it became engulfed in flames, authorities said Thursday.

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The child broke both legs in the fall, WNBC reported. New York City Fire Department Deputy Chief Anthony Montera said the child escaped more serious injury when she aimed for the dirt and not the pavement outside the Bronx high-rise, the television station reported.

The girl was listed in critical condition, WABC reported.

At least nine people were injured in the Wednesday blaze, which broke out in the 17-story building at around 6:30 p.m. EDT, according to the television station.

One other person in the apartment was hurt, WNBC reported. With the exception of those who lived in the units that burned, hundreds of others were allowed back inside their homes once the fire was doused.

Linda Kemp, a neighbor, said she kept the girl on the ground to prevent further injury, WNBC reported.

“I held her down so she wouldn’t move, to try to keep her from moving her neck and her body parts,” Kemp told the television station. “First she didn’t understand why we were holding her down. She was like, ‘Let me go, let me go.’ I had to explain to her that I couldn’t.”

Seven firefighters suffered minor injuries, WABC reported. The cause of the fire is unknown, and fire marshals will investigate the case, the television station reported.

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