Luke Skywalker
Super Moderator
{vb:raw ozzmodz_postquote}:
A New York City firefighter inspects the debris at the rear of the Brooklyn house where seven children from an Orthodox Jewish family died early March 21.(Photo: Peter Foley, European Pressphoto Agency)
Seven children from an Orthodox Jewish family who died early Saturday when fire swept through their Brooklyn home are to be buried in Jerusalem, where the family had lived before emigrating to New York.
Funeral services for the four boys and three girls of the Sassoon family, ages 5 to 16, are to be held Sunday afternoon at a Brooklyn chapel that serves their religious community.
The bodies will then be flown to Israel and buried in Jerusalem at 2 p.m. Monday, the Israeli network Arutz Sheva reported. The family had lived there for many years before moving to the Midwood neighborhood of Brooklyn two years ago. A friend said the family had planned to return to Israel to live.
It was the city's deadliest fire since 2007.
Fire officials believe the blaze was started by a malfunctioning hot plate being used to keep food warm during the 25-hour Sabbath, when religious restrictions forbid cooking. The house had only one smoke detector, in the basement.
"I call this not a tragedy but an absolute disaster," said state Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who represents the district. "Everyone's in utter shock."
He urged the Orthodox community to make sure that hot plates were working properly and that smoke detectors were installed properly and functioning.
Authorities identified the Sassoon family victims as girls Eliane, 16; Rivkah, 11; and Sara, 6; and boys David, 12; Yeshua, 10; Moshe, 8; and Yaakob, 5. All were found in upstairs bedrooms of the two-story, brick-and-wood, single-family home.
Their 45-year-old mother, Gayle, a Brooklyn native, and 14-year-old sister, Tzipara, remained in critical condition Sunday at area hospitals. They survived by jumping from a second-story window. Gayle Sassoon reportedly was burned over 45% of her body, and Tzipara suffered broken bones and smoke inhalation.
[h=2]UP NEXT[/h][h=2]03[/h]
Seven children were killed in a house fire in Brooklyn early Saturday morning.
Video provided by Newsy Newslook
Powered By WizardRSS.com | Full Text RSS Feed