Retired NYC Bravest helps Spirit Airlines crew put out midair fire

Dramatic video captured the moment a retired New York City firefighter jumped in to help crew members frantically extinguish a smoky blaze aboard a Spirit Airlines flight.

Flight 259 was en route from Dallas to Orlando, Fla., on Wednesday afternoon when a passenger’s vaping-device battery caught fire in an overhead bin, an airline rep told CNN.

Former Bravest Rocco Chierichella, who was flying with his wife, told News 4 Jax that the plane started “to drop altitude, and somebody yelled, ‘Fire!’ ”

He said “smoke was billowing” out of the overhead bin, so he jumped to help the crew put out the flames, leaving him with burns on some fingers.

The footage shot by a passenger shows Chierichella and other crew members working furiously to put out the fire before the Airbus A320 landed in Jacksonville, Fla., about 2 p.m.

“[It] was a battery-powered vape tied to a battery charging inside the compartment. Very dangerous. And it ignited a piece of luggage next to it,” the former smoke-eater said.

“I’m a retired New York City fireman, and I guess it’s just instinct. It was lucky we got to it right away. We averted a major problem. It could have been really bad,” he added.

Joseph Fleck, who was traveling with his spouse and two kids to Disneyworld, told CNN that “someone yelled, ‘Fire!’ and I look up to see the cabin filling with smoke very fast.

“The smell was terrible and made it very hard to breathe. I was coughing a lot for a good two hours after,” Fleck added.

On Twitter, he wrote: “170+ passengers coughing up toxic fumes from a battery fire and not letting us evacuate the plane immediately is why 1 person was rushed to the hospital. I’m still coughing.”

Fleck later added: “Spirit has issued me a full refund, $100 future travel voucher, food vouchers and reimbursement for the $200 uber to Orlando. This was no fault of Spirit, they handled things with great respect. I only wish we had been able to evacuate the plane once we landed.”

A Spirit rep told CNN: “The plane landed at JAX and taxied to the terminal without incident.

“We thank our crew and guests for their quick actions to ensure the safety of everyone onboard, and we thank first responders for meeting the aircraft.”

Ten people, including passengers and crew members, were removed from the plane by the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department, Capt. Eric Prosswimmer told CNN.

Their conditions were described as non-life-threatening.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident.