Overview
- Officers answering a domestic-violence 911 call in South Ozone Park, which escalated into a fiery blast around 2:57 a.m. Thursday, were knocked off their feet as the home exploded.
- Security video showed 50-year-old Anroop Parasram forcing into the basement with garbage bags holding canisters, after relatives reported he was intoxicated, armed with a knife, and a gas smell inside.
- Eight NYPD officers suffered minor injuries, a nearby resident was rescued, and bodycam video shows police lifting children from debris before a five-alarm fire collapsed the building.
- Roughly 300 FDNY and EMS personnel contained the blaze as it damaged neighboring homes, displaced about 16 people receiving Red Cross aid, and prompted vacate orders for adjacent structures.
- Following Thursday’s explosion, investigators confirmed Friday that a body had been recovered from the rubble, with identification pending as they coordinate utility shutoffs and excavation to determine the cause.