A “monstrous” inferno that burned a Brooklyn stable to the ground – killing 21 terrified horses – was “apparently accidental,” fire officials said yesterday.
Fueled by hay and manure, 40-foot flames engulfed the Bergen Beach Stables late Friday night, trapping two dozen horses inside the Mill Basin barn.
Only three of the animals survived, and the tearful owners of those who died milled around the charred remains of the stable in shock yesterday.
“They were like my daughters,” said contractor Bob Rizzo, who lost an 18-year-old horse named Babe and her 15-year-old daughter, Dance, who was born in the stable.
“It’s a loss like it would be if any of my three daughters or any of my 10 grandchildren passed. That’s how much I loved those horses.”
The blaze erupted Friday night shortly before midnight. The stable had no sprinkler system, but fire officials said none was required.
The first person on the scene was neighbor Eric Martinez, 33, who ran to the stable when his wife spotted smoke.
“I was frantic from the start. I was crying for help. It’s something I’ll never forget,” he said. “I felt so helpless.”
His wife, Ramona, added: “The horses were crying and when they stopped crying, I knew that was it.”
Firefighters were on the scene within minutes.
They used a chainsaw to cut away one of the walls and an oxygen mask to keep one pony alive – but some of the horses were so frightened they wouldn’t leave their stalls.
“It was disheartening,” said Fire Department First Deputy Commissioner William Feehan. “There was too much fire. We couldn’t get at the horses.”
One firefighter said “some of them wouldn’t come out, they were so frightened. They were jumping up and down and using their hooves to try and block the fire.”
Two of the horses, 9-year-olds Jake and Betty, belonged to the Parks Department and were being trained for use by park rangers in Queens.
“It’s unbelievable and sickening … a monstrous thing,” Parks Commissioner Henry Stern said.
Fire marshals were investigating. Preliminary testing of the embers turned up no trace of flammable liquid.
“It was apparently accidental, but we’re not ruling anything out,” said Fire Department spokesman Mike Regan.
Still, the neighborhood was buzzing with talk of past opposition to the stable, though the owners could not be reached for comment.
“We have been told that some people in the neighborhood were not happy with the stable and would have preferred plush town houses or something there,” Stern said. “We have no idea what happened, but the stable had enemies.”
Whatever the cause of the fire, it left dozens of Brooklynites in mourning.
“Noodles was my pal,” Carmine Carriero said of his 14-year-old horse.
“He would wait for me every night. He has a special whinny every time I came in. He knew the sound of my car. He was always there waiting for my carrots. He loved my grandchildren and was always licking their faces.
“All the animals here were amazing. Every one of them was a pet and part of someone’s family. This is a very personal disaster.”