NY 1

Flames broke out a little after midnight in a two-story house on Victory Boulevard in St. George.

Firefighters pulled two men from the house. They have not yet been identified. Fire officials say the house was supposed to be vacant.

"The house has been vacant for some time now," said Ray Rivera, who works in the neighborhood. "I know that there are a lot of squatters, homeless people that do congregate around the building."

"The building and those nearby were supposed to be empty and, I guess, torn down," said local resident Frank Batemarco. "They've been building like crazy here. I woke up at 12:30 last night and the whole place was filled with smoke. I thought my apartment was on fire but then I looked out and saw all the firetrucks there."

It took about 100 firefighters about two hours to extinguish the flames, which started in the rear of the boarded-up building.

"The fire was on all three floors," said FDNY Chief William Gillespie. "We had to set up for an exterior operation, so it took us several minutes to get into the building."

It's unclear what sparked the flames -- and if the men were dead before the fire started. Fire sources says that does not appear to be the case.

The vacant building was one of three slated for demolition for luxury housing. Its owner had recently applied for permits to knock the homes down by the end of the summer. He says he's heard complaints about squatters for some time.

"Many times over the course of the past several months, people have broken into the house," said property owner Frank Sercia. "Neighbors have told me the same day that we've reboarded the house up again, they're back in there are night."

This is the second suspicious fire in a vacant building in the neighborhood in three days. The last was on Scribner Avenue in Tompkinsville Sunday morning.