вЂњGambia is a very small country, 2 million people. вЂњItвЂ™s so sad that this horrific and tragic incident took so many lives, and left many people fighting for their lives.вЂќДЇadera traveled from Washington, DC, to New York after learning of the fire, which he says has devastated a close-knit community not only in New York, but in West Africa as well. ItвЂ™s a building Gambians have a lot of attachment to,вЂќ Ambassador Dawda Docka Fadera said. This was kind of a first port of call, this building. вЂњI think a lot of Gambians who came here, they stayed there before they moved anywhere else. Officials are working with local agencies to help displacedВ families in the short-term to get them back into their homes as soon as possible, which might be as early as this afternoon, Gibson added.ДЄ distribution center is also operating at Monroe College in the Bronx, where services and resources will be available to those affected, according to Torres.ДЄll leaders thanked first responders for quickly arriving and helping those at the scene, and also thanked New Yorkers for the outpouring of support to help the fire victims. He also said other landlords have also offered up housing options as well. The landlord has offered to pay for 140 hotel rooms for all those who are displaced, and is also offering some housing unit alternatives at other properties to families whose unit is no longer habitable, saidВ Torres. The focus on legislation is one part of a four-prong plan by leaders, which also includes ensuring permanent housing for the units destroyed, that those displaced in the short term can return to their units as soon as possible and provide any services needed for those affected.

Torres was joined by Bronx Borough PresidentВ Vanessa Gibson and local city council membersВ Oswald Feliz andВ Pierina Sanchez to announce the initiative on Monday.ДЄt least 17 people died, including eight children, and dozens injured, according to updated numbers from the city. They will also look into enforcement of self-closing doors, which is already required in New York City, they said. Ritchie Torres, who represents the 15th congressional district which covers most of the South Bronx,В said they would focus specifically on policies and potential legislation on the safety of space heaters, which city officials cited as the source of the fire. (Yuki Iwamura/AP)ДЄ group of federal, state and local leaders announced they are forming a task force to examine what policy failures might have contributed to SundayвЂ™s Bronx apartment fire, and said that they will guarantee all victims get services and housing. Emergency personnel work at the scene of a fatal fire at an apartment building in the Bronx on Sunday.

Bronx task office