Massive 5 alarm fire rips through row of stores in the Bronx

ABC 7 Eye Witness News NYC

A five alarm fire rips through a row of stores in the Bronx.

A massive five-alarm fire broke out in Fordham in the Bronx at around 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning, and firefighters are battling back the blaze, the New York City Fire Department confirmed to Business Insider.

The call alerting the department to the blaze came in at 5:28 a.m. and thirty minutes later had been elevated to a three alarm fire. At 7:39 a.m. the FDNY elevated it to a five-alarm fire.

US fire departments use a numbered alarm system to refer to the severity and difficulty in containing a fire. Here a five alarm fire indicates a large response team and possibly multiple firehouses.

A witness to the fire told ABC 7 Eye Witness News he saw "fireman running off the roof" as "it started getting real dangerous for them."

"As of right now, no injuries, no transports, and we're still on team and operating," an FDNY spokesperson told Business Insider.

The area around the blaze on 316 E 194th street has been largely blocked off as 44 units and 198 firefighters respond, though that number is subject to change.

Firefighters are spraying water from hoses on the ground as well as ones high up on ladders.

Live footage of the fire from local news sources shows the fire still going.