A firefighter was brought to St. Joseph's University Medical Center with a minor injury sustained in Sunday's 10 a.m. blaze on Harrison Street.
The damage was nonetheless extensive, displacing dozens of residents -- while forcing others out temporarily -- in a tightly packed cluster of homes between Rosa Parks Boulevard and Carroll Street.
A second alarm was called on arrival as flames from the upper-floor blaze shot through the roof of the three-story wood-frame building, which holds a dozen apartments.
A third alarm came about 20 minutes later.
Firefighters were barely a half-hour into the job when they were pulled from the building to mount a completely defensive attack.
The fourth alarm was sounded around 10:45 a.m., roughly 45 minutes after the fire began.
Firefighters continued to battle the blaze past noontime.
Mutual aid responders at the scene or in coverage included firefighters from Clifton, Elmwood Park, Haledon, Hawthorne, Little Falls, North Haledon, Pompton Lakes, Prospect Park, Totowa, Wayne, Wyckoff and the West Paterson Fire Department.
Passaic County Emergency Services ReHab provided canteen services.
There was no immediate word on the cause.
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