VTMBH Article: Body
On April 8 at 10:30 a.m. a fire in Hackensack, New Jersey, left more than fifty families, the majority of whom are Ecuadorian, homeless and in shock. Survivors reported that the buildings fire alarms did not work and blamed the loss of their homes on irresponsible management.
Even though the Red Cross, Ecuadorian Consul Benjamín Villacías, and Patricia Zurita, president of the Patriotic [Ecuadorian] Committee of New Jersey, intervened on behalf about the families affected, they remain in need of aid. A bank account for donations to families has been established by the Red Cross and the Patriotic Committee.
In the past few days we have heard stories from families affected by the recent disaster of safety hazards in the building, such as faulty smoke detectors and fire alarms. The families are calling for an investigation of the buildings fire and safety codes, and hope to win back in court some of what they have lost. The management company offered to return the families security deposits and last months rentmoney that does not even begin to make up for what the families have lost.
Ecuador News traveled to the site to interview the victims of the fire, who watched from the park across the street as their homes burned. Luis Jara, who had lived in the building for five years, lost all of his savings and possessions. The Cuji, Patino Pacruco, Llivisaca, Cuvi, Lazo, and Munoz families were still in shock. These families fled from the fire with only the clothes on their back, some in their pajamas, and many have lost everything to the fire.
In a previous conversation with Ecuadorian authorities in New Jersey, Consul Villacías it is was important that fire victims register with the Ecuadorian Consulate using their full names and places of birth to retrieve their legal documents and identification. At press time, the Consul has only a list of first and last names, which is not sufficient to prove victims Ecuadorian citizenship. Many of these families also lost their life savings in the fire, learning the hard way of the risks of keeping money in the house. We should all take this as a lesson that no one is safe from disasters like this one that affected many of our compatriots. Recently the Ecuadorian Consulate in New York has made available an identification card with which one can open a bank account, regardless of ones legal status in the country. For more information, call the Ecuadorian Consulate in New Jersey at (201) 985-1700.
Mona Bookman, director of Emergencies and Disasters for the Red Cross, listed services offered to the families including shelter, food, medical supplies, clothing, and psychological counseling, and acknowledged that victims are still in need. People who want to help should direct their donations to the Red Cross of Hackensack in the name of the fire victims.
Consul Villacías, besides meeting with Deputy Mayor of Hackensack Juanita Trammell and the president of the Lions Club, put in a personal appearance at the site to hear the victims stories first-hand. Some families are still waiting to re-enter the building to see what they can salvage, but so far it has been too risky for them to do so. They sleep outside in the park across the street, watching while bulldozers destroy what little is left of their former homes.
Patricia Zurita, head of the recently formed Patriotic Committee of New Jersey, also visited the site and opened a bank account for the affected families. Zurita called on the citizens of Hackensack to notify the Red Cross or the Patriotic Committee of any vacant apartments, in light of the fact that many of these Ecuadorian families have been left practically sleeping in the streets. Zurita, a community activist, joined in the work at hand and devoted herself to securing the rights of her compatriots in distress. This is one of the objectives of the new Committee, inaugurated formally at festivities this past August.
In times like these no one can be a spectator; we have to fight so that all of these people can get back at least some of what they have lost. We are Ecuadorians, we stand together in hard times, and we will fight to bring justice to the victims cause.
Even though the Red Cross, Ecuadorian Consul Benjamín Villacías, and Patricia Zurita, president of the Patriotic [Ecuadorian] Committee of New Jersey, intervened on behalf about the families affected, they remain in need of aid. A bank account for donations to families has been established by the Red Cross and the Patriotic Committee.
In the past few days we have heard stories from families affected by the recent disaster of safety hazards in the building, such as faulty smoke detectors and fire alarms. The families are calling for an investigation of the buildings fire and safety codes, and hope to win back in court some of what they have lost. The management company offered to return the families security deposits and last months rentmoney that does not even begin to make up for what the families have lost.
Ecuador News traveled to the site to interview the victims of the fire, who watched from the park across the street as their homes burned. Luis Jara, who had lived in the building for five years, lost all of his savings and possessions. The Cuji, Patino Pacruco, Llivisaca, Cuvi, Lazo, and Munoz families were still in shock. These families fled from the fire with only the clothes on their back, some in their pajamas, and many have lost everything to the fire.
In a previous conversation with Ecuadorian authorities in New Jersey, Consul Villacías it is was important that fire victims register with the Ecuadorian Consulate using their full names and places of birth to retrieve their legal documents and identification. At press time, the Consul has only a list of first and last names, which is not sufficient to prove victims Ecuadorian citizenship. Many of these families also lost their life savings in the fire, learning the hard way of the risks of keeping money in the house. We should all take this as a lesson that no one is safe from disasters like this one that affected many of our compatriots. Recently the Ecuadorian Consulate in New York has made available an identification card with which one can open a bank account, regardless of ones legal status in the country. For more information, call the Ecuadorian Consulate in New Jersey at (201) 985-1700.
Mona Bookman, director of Emergencies and Disasters for the Red Cross, listed services offered to the families including shelter, food, medical supplies, clothing, and psychological counseling, and acknowledged that victims are still in need. People who want to help should direct their donations to the Red Cross of Hackensack in the name of the fire victims.
Consul Villacías, besides meeting with Deputy Mayor of Hackensack Juanita Trammell and the president of the Lions Club, put in a personal appearance at the site to hear the victims stories first-hand. Some families are still waiting to re-enter the building to see what they can salvage, but so far it has been too risky for them to do so. They sleep outside in the park across the street, watching while bulldozers destroy what little is left of their former homes.
Patricia Zurita, head of the recently formed Patriotic Committee of New Jersey, also visited the site and opened a bank account for the affected families. Zurita called on the citizens of Hackensack to notify the Red Cross or the Patriotic Committee of any vacant apartments, in light of the fact that many of these Ecuadorian families have been left practically sleeping in the streets. Zurita, a community activist, joined in the work at hand and devoted herself to securing the rights of her compatriots in distress. This is one of the objectives of the new Committee, inaugurated formally at festivities this past August.
In times like these no one can be a spectator; we have to fight so that all of these people can get back at least some of what they have lost. We are Ecuadorians, we stand together in hard times, and we will fight to bring justice to the victims cause.