Over the weekend, a deadly five-alarm fire broke out in a six-floor East Flatbush apartment building, killing one and injuring dozens. It was a particularly damaging fire, because high winds created a "blowtorch effect," causing part of the roof and fourth floor to collapse. Police have finally identified the cause of the fire which left 100 people homeless: a voodoo sex ritual.
Sources tell the dallies that a woman paid a voodoo priest in the building $300 to perform a mystical ceremony that would bring her luck. The voodoo priest spread candles around the bed, and the couple started having sex—while mid-coitus, the candles accidentally fell over, igniting the bed sheets and their discarded clothing. Instead of calling 911, a man in the room (either the voodoo priest or his assistant, there are conflicting reports) tried to douse it with water from the sink; a man then opened both a window and the apt. door, which is what caused the blowtorch effect which then engulfed the whole building, and led to the death of retired 62-year-old guidance counselor Mary Feagin.
FDNY Commissioner Sal Cassano left out the black magic part when he spoke to reporters about the tragic incident, which took nearly 200 firefighters and almost seven hours to bring under control: "Time and time again we respond to tragedies that could have been so easily prevented. This fire had so many of those elements -- candles left on the floor near combustible material, one of the occupants trying to douse the flames before calling 911 and an open door, which allowed fire to spread into the hallway. Hopefully others will learn from this tragedy." The firefighters' union has also suggested that staffing cuts from the city contributed to the delay in response.
