Many questions remained in the immediate aftermath of the blaze, including how the fire spread so quickly in a brick building built after catastrophic fires at the turn of the 20th century ushered in an era of tougher enforcement of fire codes.

Fire escapes on the building's facade helped some escape, but officials said the fire spread through every floor of the building within just a few minutes.

Neighborhood resident Robert Gonzalez, who has a friend who lives in the building, said she got out on the fire escape as another resident fled with five children.

"When I got here, she was crying," Gonzalez said.

Other witnesses described seeing burned bodies being carried away on stretchers and young girls who had escaped the building standing barefoot outside with no coats.

Windows on some upper floors were smashed and blackened. Displaced residents wrapped in Red Cross blankets were staying warm on city buses, brought in to provide heat.

The death toll surpassed the 10 who died, including nine children, in a four-story home in another part of the Bronx in 2007. That blaze had been sparked by a space heater.

Diallo said the apartment building has tenants who hail from all over the world.

AP