Simon Ateba is Chief White House Correspondent for Today News Africa covering President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, U.S. government, UN, IMF, World Bank and other financial and international institutions in Washington and New York.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Monday ordered all flags on all city buildings, as well as stationary flagstaffs throughout the five boroughs, to be lowered to half-staff as a mark of respect for the memory of the 17 people of African descent killed a year ago in the tragic fire at Twin Parks in the Bronx.
“One year ago, a devastating fire took the lives of 17 people in the Bronx at the Twin Parks apartment complex. On that day, our city lost 17 of our neighbors and friends — they were our brothers and sisters, our mothers and fathers, our children and spouses,” said Mayor Adams.
Nearly all the 17 people killed in the 19-story apartment building on January 9, 2022, were from the Gambia or had parents who relocated to the United States from the Gambia, a country in West Africa. The building was full of working class families from West Africa and Latin America.
New York City Fire Department officials said that a malfunctioning electric space heater was to blame. It added that the rapid spread of smoke through two doors left open claimed most of the lives.
Eight of the victims were children; the youngest was 2 years old, while one had celebrated his 12th birthday the day before the deadly fire. Several members of two families were also killed in the fire.
“Since that day, our city has passed critical legislation to educate and protect New Yorkers from fires to help prevent another tragedy. Today, we honor and remember the lives lost,” added Mayor Adams at the remembrance ceremony on Monday, January 9, 2023.
