Neighbors Raise $125K For Victims Of Jackson Heights Fire

JACKSON HEIGHTS, QUEENS — After a massive fire ripped through an apartment building in Jackson Heights on Tuesday and displaced hundreds, community members raised more than $125,000 in a single day to help.

The eight-alarm fire began at 89-07 34th Avenue just after 1 p.m. on Tuesday and took nearly 12 hours and more than 300 firefighters to put out.

Firefighters arrived on the scene “in approximately three minutes,” according to officials, but when they got to the building the front door was open, which Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro said worsened the blaze. The flames quickly spread throughout the building at 89-11 34th Avenue.

"Had this fire been lower in the building, it could have had a terrible result and a loss of life with that door being left open," said Nigro.

As of Wednesday morning, FDNY officials said that 25 people were hurt, including six civilians and 19 firefighters.

No one-sustained life-threatening injuries, but hundreds were displaced from their homes, said fire officials.

“A community made up of majority low-income, working class, immigrant essential workers, already experiencing the aftermath of COVID-19 are now without their homes,” writes community organizer and co-founder of Love Wins Food Pantry, Daniel Puerto, on the GoFundMe page that benefits the 89th Street Tenants Association.

“It's hard to express the deep sadness we felt tonight as we looked into our neighbors eyes and asked how we could help. We’ve always taken care of each other and this time is no different,” he wrote.

Local politicians have also joined the call for action on Twitter: Moumita Ahmed, who is running for Queens city council in District 24, helped organize over $800 in donations from the Queens Mutual Aid Network, and New York State Senator Jessica Ramos, who represents District 13, which includes Jackson Heights, encouraged people to donate if they can.

As of 4 p.m., the fundraiser had raised just over half of the $250 thousand that they’re hoping for.

In addition to the fundraiser, organizers on the ground are collecting donations of essential items — including PPE, baby formula and diapers, and feminine hygiene products — at 33-45 90th street.

According to one person on the ground, people have received many clothing donations, and are still in need of luggage, and other basic necessities, like food, water, and soap.

Other organizations have also shown up to offer support. The Red Cross and Salvation Army supported relief efforts Tuesday and Wednesday, according to fire officials.

Andy Ajula, Director of Advocacy and Community Affairs at Communities Resist, a community-based law office that defends tenants rights in Brooklyn and Queens, tweeted that the organization is offering on-the-ground legal assistance.

Due to the extent of the damage, fire marshals haven't been able to enter the building to examine it yet, so the cause of the fire remains unknown, said officials — but, "it is not suspicious," said Nigro.