People walk at the scene of an apartment building fire in the Bronx borough of New York City, US, January 9, 2022. (Photo: Reuters)

The blaze broke out in the imposing 19-floor Twin Parks North West building which provided affordable housing units and was home to a Gambian community.

The fire itself started from a space heater in an apartment that spanned the second and third floors of the building, and only made it to the hall, officials said. But smoke still spread to every floor of the 120-unit building, likely because the door to the apartment was left open, the city's fire department commissioner Daniel Nigro told reporters at a news briefing.

This was the second major deadly fire in a residential complex in the US this week after 12 people, including 8 children, were killed early on Wednesday when flames swept through a public housing apartment building in Philadelphia.