Couple dies in large fire that's left dozens of families homeless

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS (PIX11) -- A married couple in their seventies lost their lives, and dozens of their neighbors are displaced from their homes, after fire ravaged the couple's apartment. 

The blaze that consumed the top floor apartment in the six story building half a block east of the the George Washington Bridge off ramp broke out at around 1:45 a.m.

Most of the dozens of families inside the building were sleeping at the time, but because smoke alarms worked, and neighbors took action to protect one another, the fire tragedy was prevented from being much worse. 

"The flames were coming out the window," said Juanita Alexander, a resident of the building at 718 West 178th Street, in describing the apartment where the fire was, "so then we knew it was something serious."

She said that her husband, a former NYPD officer, called 911 to report the fire, and then helped people get out.

"Everyone in the building who realized what was happening was banging on other people's doors, yelling, 'Fire!'" Alexander said. "So everybody took care of each other." 

Other residents agreed that even during a blaze that took 130 firefighters more than two hours to get under control, neighbors looked out for one another. 

Madison Ryan lives on the fifth floor, directly under the apartment that caught fire, and said that neighbors really showed how much they care. 

"They've all been really kind and really sweet," Ryan said, 'so it's terrible to hear that something like that happened."

She was talking about the loss of her neighbors Maria Tavares, 75, and her husband, Luciano Tavares, 74. The couple had been together for more than 50 years, but perished from the fire emergency. 

Their niece, Yanuska Mercado, talked about learning of their tragic passing. 

"I was crazy," she said, describing her reaction to learning about the devastating loss. "I [couldn't] believe that she was dying, and my uncle either," she continued. 

She said that her aunt was bedridden, and that her uncle was a caretaker for his wife. Their mobility issues, family members said, may have made it difficult for the couple to try and escape the fire that broke out in their apartment.   

"I was crying like crazy," Mercado said, about the family tragedy.  

Meanwhile, dozens of other families that live in the building now have to try and figure out their next steps. 

During the day on Tuesday, many residents waited by the building's front entrance, and handed their apartment door keys to the super, who the city allowed to go and retrieve residents' personal items, while they waited to see when they'll be let back in.

As some residents pointed out, damage from the fire may prevent some of them from returning for hours, while it may be months, if ever, for others to be able to get back in their apartment homes. 

"They pulled down a lot," Ryan said about the work of firefighters to get the flames under control. "A lot of the ceilings."

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.