Fatal Harlem subway fire deemed homicide; MTA offers $50K reward

NEW YORK CITY (WPIX) -- The Harlem subway fire that killed an MTA worker dead and left several others injured last month has been deemed a homicide, police said Thursday.

The MTA announced a reward of up to $50,000 will be offered for information that leads to an arrest. Crime Stoppers is also offering a $2,500 reward.

It happened on March 27 around 3:15 a.m. As a northbound No. 2 train pulled into the 110th Street/Lenox Avenue station, an MTA employee riding the train alerted the conductor to heavy smoke and fire coming from the second car, according to the MTA and police.

When firefighters extinguished the blaze, officers found three men and one woman suffering from smoke inhalation. They were taken to the hospital in stable condition, police said.

After the fire, Garrett Goble, the 36-year-old conductor who had helped get people to safety, was found on the tracks and pronounced dead at the scene, according to FDNY.