The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said at least 11 Gambians including six children have died in the Bronx apartment fire in New York, adding others are still missing but efforts are underway to locate them.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation and Gambians Abroad is deeply saddened to inform the general public that eleven (11) Gambians, including six (6) children, have died in the fire that broke in Bronx, New York on Sunday 8, January 2022.
“The apartment building ravaged by the fire is said to have been predominantly occupied by Gambian immigrants. Latest information from our Permanent Representative in New York, and Ambassador in Washington indicate that others are still missing but efforts are underway to locate them,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Both the Permanent Mission and the Embassy in Washington are working with the authorities in the City of New York with a view to locating survivors and also assisting the injured. They have also been in touch with the families concerned. Some have already been found and reunited with their families,” the statement added.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on behalf of the Gambia Government, sends its heartfelt condolences to the grieving families for this tragic loss. The Ministry prays for God’s infinite mercy and forgiveness on the departed souls,” it said, adding the public will be regularly updated as we go through these trying times.
Meanwhile, The Gambian victims included Fatoumata Drammeh, 50, Fatoumala, 21, Aisha, 19, Mohammed, 12, Hagi Jawara, 41, and his wife Isatou Jabbie, 31, Fatoumata Dukureh, aged 5, Mariam Dukureh, aged 11, five-year-old Hawa Mahamdou, Mustapha Dukyhreh, who was 11, Omar Jambay, six, and Toure Seydou, who was 12.
Wague, 47, pulled his daughter from the burning bed, suffering burns to his lips and nose, and escaped the unit with his family. Nafisha sustained burns but is alive.
Meanwhile, Fire Marshals ruled the fire ‘accidental,’ noting that it was caused by a malfunctioning space heater and that a ‘smoke alarm was present and operational’.
A New York City official, who spoke to the newspaper on the condition of anonymity, revealed fire marshals suspect the space heater had been running uninterrupted for multiple days. According to a list of resident maintenance requests shared online, building received at least four complaints last year of units being without heat. It is unclear if Unit 3N was having an issue with heat.
Officials believe the fire spread so rapidly because Mr. Wague left his apartment door open as he fled for his life with his kids.
Mayor Eric Adams said there may have been a ‘maintenance issue,’ as it was supposed to close automatically. He told CNN: ‘The doors in the building did have self-closing mechanisms. We are just looking at that specific door.’
However, Andrew Ansbro, president of the FDNY Uniformed Firefighters Association Union, said the 49-year-old building was poorly equipped to deal with a fire.