The Bronx Catastrophe
With all sadness ICNA mourns the loss of the 17 lives that perished in the Bronx fire. We send our heartfelt condolences to the families and especially to the people of Gambia from where most of the victims originated.
We cannot say how painful it is to learn that eight of the seventeen that perished in the fire were children. We also pray for the speedy recovery of those who are hospitalized. May Allah SWT help the survivors to put back their lives together in a better way.
ICNA has been on the ground from the very beginning providing relief and comfort and is still continuing to do so. We ask Allah SWT to write those who died among the martyrs. In an authentic Hadith the Prophet (May peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “Martyrdom is seven things besides being killed for the sake of Allah. The one who dies of the plague is a martyr, the one who drowns is a martyr, the one who dies of pleurisy is a martyr, the one who dies of a stomach disease is a martyr, the one who is burned to death is a martyr, the one who dies beneath a collapsed building is a martyr, and the woman who dies in pregnancy is a martyr.” (Abu Dawood)
We hope that such incidents do not happen again and those responsible must be held to account for poor building maintenance. Finally, may those who die be granted eternal happiness.
