NEW YORK (AP) – A devastating fire swept through a three-story brick home in the Bronx late Wednesday, killing eight children and one adult and leaving several others seriously injured in one of New York City’s deadliest blazes in recent memory, authorities said.

Witnesses described a ghastly sight of seeing a woman hurl children through broken windows in hopes of saving the kids from the raging inferno.

“All I see is just a big cloud of white dust and out of nowhere comes the first baby,” said Edward Soto, who caught the child. He said he caught a second child thrown from the window moments later.

All the while, screams of “help me, help me” spread through the home, said Soto, who helped rescue the children along with fellow neighbor David Todd, 40.

Fire Department spokesman Seth Andrews confirmed the death toll early Thursday. The cause of was not immediately known.

At least 10 people were injured, five of them seriously. Four firefighters and one other emergency worker were hospitalized with minor injuries.

Michael Heller, spokesman at Jacobi Medical Center, said five children ranging in age from 2 to 6 were taken to the Bronx hospital. They are suffering smoke inhalation and burns, and three are in critical condition.

Mr. Heller said one of the victims – an infant less than a year old – died at Jacobi.

A smell of smoke lingered at the scene hours afterward. Windows of the house were broken out, and parts of the building were charred and scorched.

Fatoumata Madassa, a relative of some of the residents and who lives across the street, said four families occupied in the building at 1022 Woodycrest Ave. She said they were largely immigrants from Mali, and that the four families have 17 children between them.

Ms. Madassa said she saw the fire, and her husband quickly ran to the blaze but there was too much smoke for him to help.

The fire was reported shortly after 11 p.m. Wednesday. It burned in the basement and first floor of the home in the Woodycrest neighborhood, Andrews said. The home is just a few blocks away from Yankee Stadium.

Neighbors said at least one of the families ran an import-export business, and a public records search lists African American Import Export at the address.

The injured people were taken to local hospitals including Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, Jacobi Medical Center, and Bronx-Lebanon Hospital Center, Mr. Andrews said.

Five children and one adult were taken to Lincoln, hospital spokeswoman Jill Brookner said. She said their conditions were unavailable early Thursday, but two were to be taken to a burn unit for further treatment.

Firefighters had the blaze under control shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday, Mr. Andrews said.