It has been almost three weeks since the deadly Twin Parks fire tragedy occurred in the Fordham Heights section of the Bronx, tragically taking the lives of 17 people, including 8 children, mostly of Gambian descent. Since then, Bronxites have mobilized to mourn and honor the victims, support the survivors, all while facing more tragedy in the form of gun violence across the borough.

 

The NYPD confirmed 63 people were injured in the Twin Parks North West blaze, which, according to a report by The New York Times, was the deadliest since the Bronx’s Happy Land Social Club tragedy, which resulted in the death of 87 people in 1990. That fire was caused by arsonist, Julio Gonzalez, and the impacted, unlicensed establishment where the fire broke out did not, reportedly, have working fire alarms, sprinklers, or fire exits.

 

Meanwhile, reminders of the Jan. 9 inferno remain at the Twin Parks high-rise building, located at 333, East 181^st Street. Windows were seen boarded up with plywood in the days that followed the blaze, the mood among tenants was solemn, and there was a growing memorial of cards, photos and floral tributes dedicated to the victims. Sadness and fear hung in the air, and begged the question, “How could such a disaster be prevented from happening again?”

 

District 15 City Councilman Oswald Feliz, in whose district Twin Parks North West is located, said at a press conference, on Jan. 17, in response to the tragedy, “We are working on a large packet of fire safety legislation which includes strengthening housing laws, and the enforcement of those laws.”

 

Feliz is a former tenant lawyer who has represented Bronx residents in housing court for required apartment repairs. On Jan. 18, in the company of Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson and District 15 Congressman Ritchie Torres, also in whose [congressional] district the tragedy occurred, the councilman outlined the new measures.

 

They include requiring inspections of violations, mandating re-inspections of violations identified and communicated to landlords, decreasing the amount of time landlords are given to action such violations, and increasing fines for failures to correct violations.

 

Feliz said laws currently exist, for example, requiring buildings to have self-closing doors, but the new City laws strengthen those existing laws which he hopes will better protect tenants. We asked if compliance with the new laws could be tracked by tenants via the 311 system, once a complaint is raised. “Absolutely,” Feliz said.

 

The new laws also include increasing minimum heating temperatures in apartments from 62 degrees to 68 degrees, so that families will not feel the need to use space heaters. The latter point had been suggested by Bronx Community Board 7 Parks chair, Barbara Stronczer, at the board’s public safety meeting on Jan. 13, and Norwood News had raised it with local city council members for consideration, thereafter.

 

District 11 City Councilman Eric Dinowitz, replied, “The horrific Twin Parks fire exposed to many what residents of the Bronx have lived with for too long. The severe living conditions that so many of our neighbors face are not just about quality of life, but about safety.” He added, “I look forward to working with Council Member Feliz to ensure that apartments are warm enough not to necessitate the use of space heaters, and on any other legislation that will keep our neighbors safe.”

While speaking with Feliz, we also raised the point about Jashawn’s Law, the State law passed in December 2020, led by Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81) in response to another fire tragedy in 2002, which killed then 8-year-old Jashawn Parker. That law established deadlines for landlords to make court-ordered repairs to residential buildings in New York State.

 

At the time of the 2002 fire, the building in question where Jashawn died, had over 350 building code violations, and its owner had been ordered to make repairs by a housing court judge, but those repairs were never made. We asked the councilman if, taking into account that existing laws are already in place, and new laws are being proposed, if he viewed legal protections for tenants as more holistic now or a continuation of incremental legislation that would eventually require additional tweaking again in the future.

 

Feliz said that City, State & federal legislators had been in discussions, following the Twin Parks tragedy and had formed a task force on the issue of fire safety. He added that the federal government, obviously, had a lot more power over federally funded programs like Section 8 housing, and key agencies like the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to get things done, but that each level of government was tackling different issues at the appropriate level, within their respective orbit.

 

He later told the Norwood News, “We need to create a system that truly protects our families, and truly protects our tenants.” He said, collectively, the latest round of legislation aims to ensure the future of the Bronx is not mired by similar tragedies.

 

Meanwhile, also at the federal level, on Jan. 20, Bronx Congressman Jamaal Bowman (NY-16) introduced The Heating and Cooling Relief Act, which, among other things, reduces barriers to funding relief for tenants, and makes it more difficult for utility firms to shut off heating. In addition, on Monday, Jan. 24, Torres, and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced more proposed federal legislation in the form of the “4-Point Federal Fire Safety Package,” strengthening laws relating to sprinklers, emergency doors, portable heaters, and the powers of the U.S. Fire Administration.

Aside from passing legislation, fire officials have also been diligently promoting safety measures at various community meetings throughout the borough and City. On the City’s  fire safety website, there are helpful tools to help educate the public on how to prevent a fire, and increase one’s chances of escaping in case of fire. Community programs such as Fire Safety Education, Youth Firesetters Intervention, and CPR are free of cost. The courses were created to eliminate the risk of fire deaths, and children can also participate and learn the dangers of playing with matches or lighters.

 

Meanwhile, Richard Velez, EMT at FDNY joined the Bronx Community Board 7 public safety meeting on Jan. 13, and gave a fire safety update. He asked everyone to go home and immediately check their smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. “Those alarms should be checked twice at least every month,” he said. “Press the button and make sure that the alarms are functioning.”

 

Velez also warned residents to be careful with any items that use lithium-ion batteries. “Make sure you’re using the proper battery in charging the device that the item came with, ” he said. “We know that a lot of folks, when those batteries run [out], they buy off-the-market devices and chargers, and we’ve been having problems with that, as you can well imagine.”

 

He added, “If you’re going to charge these devices, whatever you have, make sure it’s in an open area where they can vent. Don’t charge your phone under the pillow or between the pillow and the mattress. These items should be charged in an area where there’s no flammable… anything that can catch fire. If you notice or you see smoke or they’re overheating, please stop using them. Get rid of them if you can. Dispose of them properly. On the City’s website, there’s ways you can dispose of these batteries properly.”

 

 

Velez also recommended that residents try to recognize and know what type of building they are living in, fireproof or non-fireproof. “It’s very important,” he said. “If you’re in a fireproof building, and there’s a fire, you don’t need to leave your apartment and you should wait for our instructions to follow directions on what to do,” he said. “If the fire is in your apartment, please leave and make sure you shut the door so that heat and smoke don’t go into the hallway… we know what the results of that were in that fire in the Bronx. We’re trying to avoid that. It’s not the first time but we need to remind everyone. Please shut the door if there is a fire in your apartment.”

 

Velez added that FDNY/EMS was offering safety and CPR training sessions, both in-person and virtually. Anyone interested in availing of such training, perhaps for all residents of a specific building, can contact him at richard.velez@fdny.gov or (718) 999-1436. “It’s very important that we spread the word so that we can avoid another major disaster, like what we had a couple of days ago,” he said.

 

Meanwhile, donation sites and organizations, too numerous to list, continue to receive enormous amounts of much-needed items to assist the fire survivors with clothes, food, cosmetics, bed linen, and many other things needed to regain a sense of normalcy.

 

Norwood News tried to speak with some of the Gambian Youth Organization (GYO) volunteers based at 214 East 181st Street, on Jan. 17, about the number of donations received. However, they preferred not to disclose their names or speak on the record. Some mentioned they were also too overwhelmed, trying to figure out how to distribute and direct donations to stop and talk. They did say they were no longer accepting in-kind donations because they didn’t have any more space to take them in. Their contact phone number is (646) 470-6330.

 

Similarly, a security guard at Monroe College, located at 2501 Jerome Avenue, a site set-up by City officials to help fire survivors, said they were no longer accepting contributions there either when we visited on Jan. 17. The security team were unable to comment on the relief efforts underway at the college, and we were unable to enter to see the donations or speak to anyone. The contact number at Monroe College is (718) 933-6700.

 

Meanwhile, the Verizon Foundation recently confirmed that it had made a $10,000 donation to the Bronx Chamber of Commerce Foundation, with local Verizon employees also donating money and goods to surviving community members. A Verizon representative said that when Verizon network-operations manager, Elizabeth Vasquez, learned of the tragedy at the Twin Parks apartment building, she helped collect money, diapers, detergent, and personal hygiene products for its residents.

 

On the other hand, recognizing the cultural sensitivity and needs of the mostly Muslim, Gambian community members, April Horton, manager for Verizon’s state & local government affairs team, helped collect prayer mats, abayas and veils to help displaced residents feel more comfortable in local shelters. For survivors of the fire, the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, https://www.bronxchamber.org/foundation, is working to distribute and offer goods and services, including burial, apartment cleaning and school supplies.

 

As of the time of writing, there are also some other sites that continue to accept donations. Some of these are The Riverdale Jewish Center at 3700 Independence Avenue Bronx, NY 10463, SAR Academy at 655 West 254th Street Bronx, NY 10471, and the Bronx office of NYC Department of Education, located at 1230 Zerega Avenue Bronx, NY 10462.

 

On Tuesday, Jan. 25, Pix11 News reported that in the two weeks since the Twin Parks fire, despite all the money raised by the public and local businesses, survivors said none of the money had made it to them yet, and many residents of the Twin Parks Towers were also still living in area hotels, and were frustrated about how long it was taking for housing and financial assistance to come.

 

 

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson spoke with PIX11 Morning news on Tuesday, Jan. 25, to share the latest updates on the issue and provide some answers and clarity. Gibson said, “The mayor’s fund has already started with its first disbursement. Each household will receive a little bit over $2,200.” She said other organizations based at the Monroe College service center were also providing gift cards valued at $500. In addition, she said the City was also able to join Bronx businesses which, collectively, were able to raise over $100,000, and were also disbursing $500 gift cards for each affected household.

 

Gibson added that they were also working with the Gambian Youth Organization, whose GoFundMe campaign reached over $1 million in a short time, to help them disburse the funds, and since their campaign has since closed for donations. She also clarified that the money would not only be used to help the Gambian community but all those affected by the Twin Parks tragedy.

 

Feliz later spoke to Norwood News also about the various, collective efforts by the Bronx community, in general, in responding to the tragedy, saying, “The Bronx has been plagued with many tragedies, including fire tragedies. We’re very thankful for everyone in our entire City and in our entire nation, thankful for reaching out and offering help, and thankful for everyone who has been there for the affected families.” He said one of the most successful donation funds had been the mayor’s fund which had raised approximately $2 million, and which, he said, would be going to the affected families.

 

Asked what the difficulties had been in responding to the crisis, the councilman said, “Last Sunday’s tragedy was an unimaginable devastating tragedy and no words can explain how our community felt, and no words can ever bring back the lives that were lost, but we had a very strong team, a dedicated team on the ground assisting the families every second of the way, in every way, with temporary housing, but [also] getting them on the path of permanent housing again.”

 

A slightly tired-sounding Feliz added that the necessary repairs were quickly made but many families did not want to return to the same building to relive the tragedy, so they were able to contact CBR Section 8 to transfer those affected to alternative housing, elsewhere. Asked, outside of the City appointed officials and employees from the councilman’s and other elected officials’ offices, how many volunteers had been involved in the fire relief efforts, the councilman said, “well over a thousand” gave their time to help. “We have a community that’s been very thankful for all the efforts that have been made to help them,” Feliz said.