BROOKLYN (BNO NEWS) -- Firefighters in the New York City borough of Brooklyn are battling a 3-alarm fire at a residential building, fire officials said on early Sunday morning.

A spokesman for the Fire Department of New York said the fire broke out at around 5.12 a.m. local time at a four-story apartment building, located at 510 61st Street. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, although it is being treated as suspicious.

"[It involves] multiple dwellings. I believe fire broke out on all the floors and [went] through the roof," the spokesman said. He later added that 17 civilians were injured, including three people who were seriously injured and two people who sustained moderate injuries. The others sustained minor injuries.

The main body of the 3-alarm fire was extinguished as of 6.30 a.m. local time, although small pockets of fire continued to burn. A total of 33 units with 138 firefighters are at the scene of the blaze.

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