now they seek to avoid a repeat

(CNN) — Residents who survived the tragic fire in a Bronx apartment building in New York that killed at least 17 people are beginning the arduous process of putting their lives back together. Meanwhile, authorities are looking for long-term solutions to ensure that a similar tragedy never happens again.

“The two values ​​that matter most to all of us are our family and our homes. And losing both in the span of a single tragedy is so terrifying and traumatic that few of us can imagine it,” said Ritchie Torres, representative of the area where the fire occurred, to CNN on Monday.

At least eight children died in the fire this Sunday. A CNN review of local hospitals shows that at least eight patients remain hospitalized in connection with the fire, while at least 25 people received treatment and were released.

Many of those who died or were rushed to hospital were affected by smoke that started a fire inside a duplex unit on the second and third floors of the 19-story apartment building.

A faulty electric heater, located inside a bedroom, sparked the fire, New York Mayor Eric Adams said Monday. When residents left the burning unit, the apartment door was left open, allowing the flames to spread, explained Fire Department Commissioner Daniel Nigro.

The fire was contained in that hallway, but the smoke spread upward and covered much of the building. The doors were supposed to close automatically, but both the apartment and the stairway to the 15th floor did not work properly, Nigro said Monday.

The building’s doors and smoke alarms, which were failing according to some reports, are the main focus of the investigation, Nigro reported.

The building’s construction conditions will also be a matter for a new task force made up of federal, state and local leaders to investigate. The group says it will focus on policies and possible laws that can prevent further tragedies.

Torres announced the creation of the task force Monday, along with Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson and local councilors Oswald Feliz and Pierina Sánchez.

“There are underlying issues that we face every day with fire alarms, sprinkler systems and vents, heat and hot water. And the basic needs that all New York City residents and tenants must have, “said Gibson.

The focus on legislation is one part of a four-pronged plan that leaders have outlined. The project also includes ensuring permanent housing for those whose units were destroyed and that the displaced can return to their homes as soon as possible. As well as providing the necessary services for those affected.

In addition to investigating enforcement of New York laws requiring self-closing doors, Torres said the group would also explore whether current minimum heating requirements are sufficient. The heating in the Bronx building appeared to be working, Torres added, but residents still felt the need to use space heaters to maintain the temperature.

Built in 1972, the building was funded by the federal government, so it could be built outside of New York City’s fire code, Nigro said Sunday. But he added that this is unlikely to have been a factor in the fire.

At a press conference Monday, representatives from the New York Firefighters Union confirmed that the building was not required to comply with the city’s fire codes.

“We need to clarify in federal law that federal developments, developments regulated and subsidized by the federal government, must be subject to local fire codes, housing codes, and building codes. That all Americans have access to safe housing and affordable, including fire-safe housing, Torres told CNN’s Jim Sciutto.

Survivors describe how they fought thick smoke from the New York fire

Residents of the 120-unit building mentioned that fire alarms frequently failed at the site. So when they rang on Sunday morning, Daisy Mitchell “paid no attention to them,” as she told CNN.

But then Mitchell’s husband started smelling smoke in their 10th floor unit and they ran into a dense cloud when they went outside to investigate.

“I went to the stairs, opened the door, he just pushed me back [a] the house, “he added.” If I had stayed out there for another three seconds, I would have died too, “he added.

Karen Dejesus lives on the same floor of the apartment where the fire occurred and said the flames invaded her residence.

“I could see the flames, I could see the smoke and everything, you know, going into my apartment,” Dejesus said.

Dejesus said firefighters broke down her door to rescue her, her granddaughter and her son. They had to exit through a window to escape the flames.

She also mentioned that the fire alarms in the building were going off frequently.

“A lot of us were used to hearing the fire alarm go off. So it was customary for us,” he said. “It wasn’t until I saw smoke coming through the door that I realized it was a real fire. And I heard people yelling ‘help, help, help.’

Mamadou Wague said he was startled awake Sunday morning by the sound of his children yelling, “Fire! Fire!”

Wague lives on the third floor of the building with her eight children, whose ages range from 6 months to 18 years.

His family was unable to flee the building because there was too much smoke, he said. Terrified, they waited at a neighbor’s apartment, putting wet towels under the doors, until firefighters arrived 15 to 30 minutes later to carry them downstairs.

Wague, an Uber driver who immigrated to the United States from Mali in 2000, said the fire burned all of his family’s belongings.

“Everything was destroyed in my apartment,” he said. “Everything is gone.”

The Red Cross provided emergency housing to 22 families, consisting of 56 adults and 25 children, the group said in a statement.

“Worried and devastated”

Authorities have not released the names of the people who died, but those who have yet to hear from their loved ones fear the worst.

Yusupha Jawara told CNN that he has been trying to reach his brother and sister-in-law ever since he learned of the fire. But they don’t answer their phones, he said.

“I am totally worried and devastated. Not just me, but the whole community and the family in general. Everyone is worried. We don’t know what happened … That’s the hardest part: not knowing,” Jawara told CNN.

Nfamar Kebe pointed out that at least one of his relatives died in the fire and that his nephew’s 2-year-old son is hospitalized and fighting for his life.

But Kebe, who came to the US from Guinea 35 years ago, said the building and community are home to many West African immigrants who have become part of his extended family.

“We are one community,” he says. “When we meet here, we are the same family.”

Many of those in the building were Muslim immigrants from the West African nation of The Gambia. The country’s ambassador told CNN that the building had been a beloved home for many immigrants over the years.

“I think a lot of the Gambians who came here stayed there before moving elsewhere,” said Ambassador Dawda Docka Fadera. This was a type of first port of call, this building. It is a building that Gambians are very attached to, “he added.

CNN’s Taylor Romine, Tami Luhby, Catherine E. Shoichet, Brynn Gingras, Bonney Kapp, and Mirna Alsharif contributed to this report.