East Harlem residents gathered together for Sunday mass to pray for the eight victims who perished in Wednesday’s deadly gas explosion.
Mayor de Blasio joined tearful congregants of two churches that each lost parishioners in an effort to begin healing the pain caused by the tragic blast.
Joined by his wife Chirlane McCray and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, de Blasio first visited Bethel Gospel Assembly to remember Carmen Tanco, 67, and Griselde Camacho, 44.
The mayor said the women “were examples to all of us” because of the faith and spirit they demonstrated. He spoke at a podium with a screen above him displaying photos of the women.
“I’ve heard from so many people that they were women of great generosity, warmth and spirit,” he said. “They had a deep and abiding faith. And in moments like this we remember that those who get the most from life are those who give the most to others.”
Tanco, a dental hygienist who participated in church-sponsored medical missions to Africa and the Caribbean, often served as an usher at services and would greet her fellow congregants at the door, said Michelle Robinson, the church’s business administrator.
“We feel the void,” she continued. “Both women were very active members.”
“We are a family and we’re all just missing the big hugs she used to give.”
McCray announced to the crowd the launch of a fundraising drive to help those affected by the explosion, saying that approximately $250,000 had already been raised.
The money, she said, will support a relief plan that includes a victims’ assistance fund, which would cover costs connected to funeral arrangements, as well as rent and household expenses. The plan also includes counseling and outreach to immigrant communities.
“If there’s one thing New Yorkers can count on when there’s a crisis, it’s other New Yorkers,” McCray said. “We know how to unite and lift each other up, and when our neighbors are hurting, we just roll up our sleeves and pitch in, as so many of you did last week.”
The mayor also payed a visit to another neighborhood church Sunday where members of the Spanish Christian Church — which had been located on the first floor of one of the destroyed buildings — were celebrating mass.
“The pain is so intense for the members of this family,” de Blasio said as he addressed those in attendance.
“I’m thinking of Pastor Thomas Perez right now,” he said, referring to the shattered flock’s leader. “A man who had lost his church literally lost his church. But the absence of a building didn’t take away his faith.”
Meanwhile, the investigation into what caused the deadly inferno and collapse remained stalled Sunday as the FDNY continued removing the remaining debris from the buildings’ basements.
“We thought earlier today, debris removal and actions to take a wall down would be complete, but the investigative work is tedious and slow, in some respects,” said FDNY spokesman Jim Long. “It takes time to do investigations, document and voucher evidence and continue with forensics.”
Long said that once inside the basement, fire marshals and investigators from the NYPD’s Arson and Explosion Squad would attempt to recreate the scene to try and pin down the cause of the blast.
“They test any appliances and see what results those produce and hopefully narrow it down to the origin and what went on down there,” he said. “We’re going to be looking at every piece of evidence both to get an understanding of what occurred and why.”