The Manhattan Supreme Court building, where Donald Trump’s civil business fraud trial has been taking place, was evacuated Wednesday after someone apparently set fire to documents.
Court spokesperson Al Baker said three floors were evacuated, and more than a dozen court officers sustained minor injuries after the suspect set papers on fire inside the fourth floor and used a fire extinguisher to douse the flames shortly after 4 p.m., according to the New York Post.
Arthur Engoron, the judge presiding over Trump’s case, was among those evacuated from the building.
Person sets fire to papers inside NYC courthouse, judge in Trump fraud trial forced to evacuate https://t.co/TBPurcOSt3 pic.twitter.com/rGPBnLhV9Y
— New York Post (@nypost) December 14, 2023
The incident occurred hours after testimony concluded, and Trump was not inside the courthouse at the time of the fire.
The New York Post reports:
The FDNY responded to the scene after receiving a report of a “suspicious odor,” likely caused by the fumes of the fire extinguisher, according to a spokesperson for the department.
In total, 17 people suffered minor injuries and two of those — a sergeant and a court officer — were taken to New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital for observation, while the other 15 refused medical attention at the scene, according to Baker and the FDNY.
All of the wounded were court officers, Baker said.
Some of the injured were coughing due to the chemicals released by the fire extinguisher, police said.
Court officers took the individual responsible for the blaze into custody.
Fire at NYC Courthouse During Trump Trial: 17 Injured, 3 Floors Evacuated https://t.co/VzhqT3lK4Q #Fire #NYC #Courthouse #During #Trump
#Trial #17Injured #3Floors #Evacuated #SupremeCourt #Manhattan #Arson #Arrest #GOP #Democrats #Iowa #civil #fraud #trial #NYFD #NYPD pic.twitter.com/KaaO2YlTn9— newslink7.com (@Newslink7com) December 14, 2023
“There was a visible haze in the stairwell between the third and fourth floor, according to an Associated Press reporter who was asked to leave the building,” Fox News reports.
Fire in NYC courthouse hosting Donald Trump's trial leaves 17 injured as three floor are evacuated after person set papers on fire then used a fire extinguisher to put it out
Three floors of the state's Supreme Court in lower Manhattan had to be evacuated on Wednesday afternoon… pic.twitter.com/Z067FN7qPd
— Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) December 14, 2023
Per Fox News:
Officials didn’t immediately identify the man who was arrested.
The evacuation came hours after the conclusion of testimony in Trump’s civil fraud trial case, which has played out on the building’s third floor for nearly three months. Among those evacuated was Judge Arthur Engoron, who has presided over the trial.
Trump was not in the building Wednesday. Lawyers in the case are scheduled to make their closing arguments next month.