NYC Steps Up Aid, Donations For Bronx Fire Victims

NEW YORK CITY — Many families who escaped a devastating fatal fire in a Bronx apartment building fire vowed one thing: never to return.

“Many of them don’t want to go back to the building,” said Sheikh Musa Drammeh, who is helping coordinate aid for families affected by the tragedy Sunday.

But that doesn’t mean residents of 333 E. 181st St. will be without shelter and help for long. New Yorkers have stepped up with donations, promises of governmental assistance and temporary places to stay.

The acts of charity and kindness — both big and small — are helping the families affected by the fire, Drammeh said.

He said their pain can never be removed — an unfortunate truth he learned from his volunteer work in the aftermath of other tragic fires in New York City — but have covered their immediate needs as they prepare to say goodbye to their loved ones.

Funerals for at least 17 people who died in the fire likely will commence in the coming days, he said.

“If you have to be in such a problem, New York is the best place,” he said.

Donations poured in soon after FDNY firefighters quenched flames and cleared the deadly smoke from the 19-story apartment building.

New York City's political leaders, community groups and aid organizations have pledged to help families displaced by the fire.

Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday said the state will set aside money for the building's residents, in addition to a victim's compensation fund.

Likewise, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer said residents of 90 units in the building with federal housing vouchers can move to any eligible dwelling they want — a benefit from a law already on the books.

Drammeh said the majority of families affected by the fire hail from the Gambia, followed by Mali and Guinea. He said some will want their loved ones to be buried in New York, while others would prefer to lay them to rest in Africa.

"These are logistics that are being worked on," he said.

Drammeh said the best support at this point doesn't come from material donations. Within the past day, he said advocates have asked New Yorkers and others to donate money instead.

"The items are needed, but we don’t want to end up in a situation where there are very valuable items ending up in a service room not being used,” he said.

“The bloodline of mitigating the tragedy is through funding,” he said. “These people are poor and suffering in the first place.”

Many fundraisers have popped up in the tragedy's aftermath — to the point that state Attorney General Letitia James warned New Yorkers to beware of sham charities.

Drammeh recommended donations be made through the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City. The fundraising portal can be found here.

New Yorkers' generosity — especially those made anonymously without credit — hasn't gone unnoticed by affected families, he said.

“They care, because they’ve been touched,” he said. “America is a great country because its people are great.”

"I have been able to talk to many, many, and they all express gratitude so far,” he said.

The tragedy also shines a light on the need for government to step up on housing and urban poverty, Drammeh said.

He said human beings in 2022 shouldn't be in living arrangements that require electric space heaters of the type that authorities said caused the fire.

"When it comes to response, the government earns an A+ always,” he said. “But we should not be responding. We need to fix the extreme poverty.”

“The government should prevent tragedy. Period,” he said.