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Officials: Second Smallest Number Of Fire Deaths Ever For NYC In 2015

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Fewer people died in fires in New York City in 2015 than the year before -- marking the second-lowest figure for fatal fires in city history, officials said Friday.

Statistics released Friday by the city showed there were 59 fire deaths last year, down from 71 in 2014. In the month of June, there were none at all.

The record was set in 2012 for fewest fire deaths, with 58, according to the New York Daily News. In 1970, 310 people died in fires.

Officials tell the newspaper that 80 percent of the deaths last year were connected to fires in private homes without working smoke alarms.

Firefighters responded to more than 1.7 million calls last year, a 6.4 percent increase over 2014.

(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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