The Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York will dedicate all of its new contributions toward helping families impacted by the deadly five-alarm Bronx fire that occurred on Jan. 9, Mayor Eric Adams announced Monday.
Adams has started his second week in office reeling from one of the deadliest fires in recent history that tragically claimed the lives of eight children and nine adults and injured some 60 others. In addition to pledging the implementation of an emotional support system for children in local schools and the aid of the Red Cross, the mayor has also implemented a fund to garner financial aid for those injured and displaced.
“Yesterday’s fire in the Bronx is an unspeakable tragedy, but I promise New York City will be there to help our neighbors through it,” Adams said at a press conference Monday afternoon. “I’m grateful to all of the firefighters, EMS workers, and first responders who responded within minutes to save lives. The city stands ready to give impacted families all the support they need — it’s what we do. Every dollar given to the Mayor’s Fund will go directly to those affected by the fire; please give if you can and together we will get through this.”
Adams urged anyone who wants to drop off items for donation, such as clothes or food, to contact their local elected officials or the American Red Cross; do not bring them to local police or fire stations.
“If you want to help financially, we have the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York. Every dollar raised will go directly to the family members that are involved. So, this way we can help families in a real way,” Adams said.
In addition to providing meaningful aid to all of those impacted by the deadly fire, Adams along with Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro stressed that one vital lesson must be learned from this tragedy: close the door behind you when fleeing from a fire.
“We’re going to double down on that message in my conversation with the chancellor this morning. We’re going to send out communications to all of our schools and state that we want our children to receive the same level of reinforcement muscle memory is everything. And if we can drill that in, we can save lives by closing the doors not only in this city, but across the entire globe. This painful moment can turn into a purposeful moment as we send the right message of something as simple as closing the door,” Adams added.
FDNY has also put out an advisory with the Mayor’s office that “space heaters need space.” They advise that portable heaters should be kept at least three feet from bedding, curtains, and other materials, and to always plug the device directly into the wall outlet and not an extension cord.
