A 55-year-old homeless man has been taken into custody in connection with a devastating fire that ravaged a Bronx NYCHA housing complex, claiming the life of one resident and leaving another fighting for survival.
The blaze erupted just before midnight on Saturday at the Boston Secor Houses, prompting a frantic response from firefighters. When they arrived, they found two men unconscious and unresponsive within the building, sparking an immediate investigation.
Ronald McCallister, 60, a longtime resident of the complex, was pronounced dead at the scene, while a 37-year-old man remains in critical condition after being airlifted to hospital. Five others were treated for injuries, with their conditions currently listed as stable.
According to authorities, it was Samuel Calderon who had been dismantling a stove in an attempt to cook, but his actions inadvertently caused a gas leak that ignited the fire. Investigators are still working to establish a motive behind Calderon's actions.
As of Wednesday evening, Calderon remains incarcerated, awaiting assignment of counsel.
The blaze erupted just before midnight on Saturday at the Boston Secor Houses, prompting a frantic response from firefighters. When they arrived, they found two men unconscious and unresponsive within the building, sparking an immediate investigation.
Ronald McCallister, 60, a longtime resident of the complex, was pronounced dead at the scene, while a 37-year-old man remains in critical condition after being airlifted to hospital. Five others were treated for injuries, with their conditions currently listed as stable.
According to authorities, it was Samuel Calderon who had been dismantling a stove in an attempt to cook, but his actions inadvertently caused a gas leak that ignited the fire. Investigators are still working to establish a motive behind Calderon's actions.
As of Wednesday evening, Calderon remains incarcerated, awaiting assignment of counsel.
and all these people got hurt 5 others were super lucky to be alive 1 dead man is just devastating can u believe samuel caldron thought he could cook on the stove lol guess he didnt get the memo about those things being super flammable 
anyway it just goes to show how hard it is for ppl who are homeless to access basic necessities like food and water sometimes i feel like we should be helping more people like that in need instead of just throwing money at fancy housing projects 
This is just so frustrating... like, how do we even prevent these kinds of tragedies? I mean, Samuel Calderon was literally trying to cook in his apartment because he had no access to heat or hot water and that's what led to the fire 
. And what really gets me is, if we're gonna lock up someone for trying to survive in a system that's already stacked against them, then shouldn't we be working on fixing those underlying issues too? 
This is just so heartbreaking... like, I get it, he was trying to cook and all, but come on 
! You can't just mess around with gas lines, especially in a crappy apartment complex where you're already struggling. And now that poor guy Ronald's gone and another dude's fighting for his life... it's just too much 
. I feel like we need to do better, you know? Make sure these ppl have access to resources and stuff so they don't resort to doing something reckless. It's not like it's a rocket science thing 
. We should be helping each other out here, not trying to figure out who's at fault in the midst of chaos 
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. I mean, 55-year-old homeless man gets taken into custody... it's not just about the crime he committed, it's about how he ended up in that situation 
. And what's with the stove thingy? Like, can't we teach people basic safety rules or something? 
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and it's like, what are we doing? 
but honestly, I feel bad for Samuel Calderon, he was just trying to make ends meet 
. his crime rate is like, way lower than the average NYC resident 
and maybe if we had more affordable housing options, ppl wouldn't be resorting to this stuff 
but what's the point of these statistics if we're just gonna keep pushing people into homelessness? 
at least 70% of ppl who suffer from mental health issues don't get the treatment they need 
this is so sad what was he thinking trying to cook in a NYCHA building no electricity like who does that anyway? and now innocent people have to suffer because of some poor soul's mistake 
can't we all just be careful w/ fire & make sure we're not causin harm to others?!
? You can't judge him by lookin' at the end result, you gotta consider the whole situation.
. It's just crazy that Samuel was trying to cook in his apartment without electricity and ended up causing a gas leak 
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