At around 9:30 a.m., a fire broke out at Bryant Park Winter Village in Midtown Manhattan. Footage of the fire was shared on social media, showing heavy fires engulfing several kiosks at the Bryant Park holiday market.
Firefighters were quick to arrive at the park located on West 40th Street. After 30 minutes were able to control it. Fortunately, no one was injured during the fire.
"There was slight damage to the adjacent kiosk and there was some heat impingement on the roof of the ice skating rink behind the kiosk on fire," Battalion Chief of FNDY's Battalion 9 Joe Castellano said. "No real fire spread, just some flame impingement, and you see a little browning of the white roof structure."
The incident is currently being investigated and there is no information regarding the source of the fire. For the time being, commuters should expect traffic delays and road closures, according to NBC New York.
"We are grateful for the FDNY's quick response to the incident that occurred earlier today," a Bryant Park spokesman told the outlet. "The Rink and The Lodge are currently open. Most of The Holiday Shops have reopened, and we expect all the Holiday Shops that were not affected by the fire to reopen later today."
On December 16, a previous fire also engulfed a holiday market. That time, the fire broke out at the Herald Square Holiday Market. While firefighters controlled the fire at Herald Square, one firefighter, unfortunately, suffered serious injuries.
"We are heartbroken to share that a fire occurred early this morning on the north side of our Herald Holiday Market at Broadway and 36th Street, resulting in the destruction of a number of small business booths," Urbanspace said in a statement at the time. They run the holiday market at Herald Square.
"Our commitment to supporting the incredible small business vendors who make this market special remains unwavering," the statement continued. "We are currently coordinating with each impacted vendor to explore ways to help them during this critical time."
When asked about the two fires that have taken place in December, Castellano didn't seem worried. "I don't think they were a concern at all, I think we just had two fires," the Battalion Chief answered.
