Families prepare to lay to rest victims lost in Bronx fire

NEW YORK – Calls to supplication rang retired from a Bronx mosque Wednesday, arsenic a bereaved assemblage prepares to hide their dormant — 17 souls — successful the coming days and families question closure from the city's astir devastating occurrence successful decades.

Among those who await ceremonial rites are a 2-year-old boy, a parent who perished with 3 of her children, and a household of five, arsenic good arsenic a hubby and woman whose 4 children were present orphans.

“This community, these radical person gone done truthful much,” said Sheikh Musa Drammeh, a spokesperson for a assemblage with a heavy Muslim faith. At slightest a twelve victims worshipped astatine the Masjid-Ur-Rahmah mosque, conscionable blocks from Sunday’s devastation.

“Now they are mourning, but they are precise knowing that if it happened, it had to happen," helium said. “And they person nary close to question wherefore it happened.”

Community leaders were expected to huddle Wednesday day to program retired ceremonial arrangements and determine if immoderate of the dormant volition beryllium repatriated. The immense bulk of those who died successful the occurrence astatine a Bronx flat analyzable had ties to Gambia, Africa's tiniest country.

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“The astir important happening is truly giving each different support. We are each members of the aforesaid community, truthful we are similar family,” said Haji Dukuray, whose niece, Haja, died successful the occurrence with her hubby and their 3 children — Fatoumata, 5, Mariam, 11, and Mustafa, 12.

Mustafa had conscionable celebrated his birthday, the nighttime earlier the fire.

“Such beauteous angelic eyes,” neighbour Renee Howard, 68, had said astir Mustafa earlier successful the week.

The aesculapian examiner's bureau said each the victims suffocated from the heavy fume that poured retired of a third-floor apartment, wherever officials accidental a malfunctioning electrical abstraction heater sparked the deadly.

The occurrence itself didn't dispersed far, but it produced plumes of heavy achromatic fume that streamed into the hallway earlier filling the stairwell with rancid smoke.

People ran down the darkened steps, immoderate from the apical level of the 19-story building. Many escaped, but others collapsed and perished connected their mode down.

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The dormant ranged successful property from 2-year-old Ousmane Konteh to 50-year aged Fatoumata Drammeh, according to a database of names released by New York City police, and included 8 children.

Musa Kabba, the imam astatine the Masjid-Ur-Rahmah, said the mosque was trying to signifier prayers and funerals.

The aesculapian examiner’s bureau has yet to merchandise each of the dormant to their families.

Until then, families wait.

Islamic contented usually calls for burial wrong 24 hours, but the grieving has been further drawn retired by the dilatory gait successful which loved ones were being released to ceremonial homes.

“We’re each precise anxious to beryllium honorable with you,” said Dukuray. “It’s the astir important happening to cognize close present and I can’t absorption connected thing until that that truly happens.”

But amid the tragedy, helium and others said, the destiny of their loved ones would not beryllium successful the hands of Allah.

"As a Muslim, what we taught successful our faith, what it teaches us, erstwhile thing happens to america erstwhile there's a catastrophe oregon whether you suffer thing oregon you suffer a loved one," helium said, “is that the bully Lord has allowed it."

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Dukuray continued: "The lone happening we are guaranteed successful this beingness is death.”

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Associated Press journalists Mary Altaffer successful New York and Michael Hill successful Albany, New York, contributed to this report.

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