NYC blaze kills retired bus driver, his dog: officials

A man and his dog were killed Saturday by a smoky Queens blaze that left two firefighters with minor injuries, family and officials said.The fire broke out at an apartment building at 133-12 133th St.in South Ozone Park around 12:30 a.m., officials said.

Resident Roger Assmann, 57, was rescued and rushed to Jamaica Hospital in critical condition, but was pronounced dead a short time later, his longtime partner, Adrian Tayco, told The Post.His rescue dog, Dylan, had to be put down because of smoke inhalation, said Tayco, who said Assmann was a retired bus driver.“He used to say, ‘With a name like that you need to be able to laugh at yourself,’” the 49-year-old recalled.Assmann was raised in the house, which had been in the family for a hundred years, Tayco said.

The pair had been together since 2001.  Tayco was staying at his mother’s place in Manhattan when the fire began.Video shows heavy smoke pouring out of the back of the two and a half story building.“He called me to say, ‘Hey, I love you, there’s a fire, I’m afraid,’” Tayco recalled.

“And I said, OK ‘I’m on my way.I could hear on the phone that the firemen were getting in,” Tayco said.“And then I hung up because I wanted him to focus on getting out.”“Tell people who you love, you love them,” he said.

“Because you don’t know when the last time will be that you can.And then you try to find old voicemails just to hear them.”Twenty-five units and 106 firefighters battled the flames, which were under control by 1:56 a.m., the FDNY said.

The two firefighters suffered minor injuries....