NEW YORK — Fire tore through three townhouses on Staten Island early Thursday, injuring 34 people including two young children who were tossed out of a smoke-filled second-floor window into the arms of neighbors below, authorities and witnesses said.

About 200 firefighters responded to the blaze that erupted at about 1 a.m. and battled the five-alarm fire for several hours.

A Fire Department of New York spokesman said 23 firefighters and 11 civilians suffered injuries ranging from minor to serious but none was considered life-threatening. He said the number was expected to climb slightly.

He said the flames were so heavy that firefighters were unable to say where the fire originated. That would be part of the investigation into what caused the blaze, he said.

“My life is in there,” said Cindy Piscopo, who lived on the first floor of one of the four-family townhouses.