RAW: Firefighter who died in fire separated from others, commissioner said

NEW YORK (CNN) - Firefighter Michael Davidson, 37, died after helping fight a five-alarm fire Thursday night in Harlem.

The building is the site of the former St. Nick's Jazz Pub, where Edward Norton was directing and producing "Motherless Brooklyn," which stars Norton, Bruce Willis, Willem Dafoe and Alec Baldwin, CBS New York reported.

The blaze started in the basement, where the jazz pub is located and where filming was going on, CBS New York reported.

The producers of "Motherless Brooklyn" said in a statement that the film crew noticed the smoke coming from below them and alerted the fire department.

"As soon as we noticed smoke coming up into our set, our crew immediately alerted the fire department and began alerting residents of the building even as we evacuated our cast and crew," the statement said.

As the fire grew, firefighters started backing out of the building.

Somehow, during that process, officials say Davidson got separated from the rest of the unit.

His fellow firefighters found him unconscious, and they were unable to revive him.

The producers of "Motherless Brooklyn" expressed their condolences, admiration and gratitude for the NYFD: “New York City firefighters truly are the bravest in the world. We watched firsthand with astonishment as they charged into the smoke to make sure all were safely out and then fought to contain the blaze and prevent it from spreading, putting their lives on the line as they do every day.  The FDNY are real life super-heroes and have our boundless admiration and gratitude.”

Copyright 2018 CNN. All rights reserved. Raycom News Network contributed to this report.