Black Saturday: One of the largest fires in Staten Island history in photos
Updated 1:31 PM;
Today 12:41 PM
Mrs. Dorothy Vorek stands within the leveled walls of her former home at 875 Sinclair Avenue in Huguenot, as a fire pumper throws a stream to test water flow from a nearby hydrant. Mrs. Vorek's home, was one of about 100 structures destroyed or damaged in the 1963 brush fire epidemic on the South Shore – April 20, 1963. (Staten Island Advance)Staten Island Advance
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STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. –– Nearly 60 years ago, 100 homes were destroyed, as three different fires simultaneously burned through multiple Staten Island neighborhoods.
On April 20, 1963, also known as Black Saturday, a total of three large brush fires began in Rossville, Tottenville, and Mariners Harbor. In their wake, the fires caused more than $2 million of property damage and left over 500 people homeless.