On the 16th day after the fatal Belmont fire that broke out at 660 East 187th Street destroyed the building, animal rights advocates and neighbors joined displaced residents on Thursday, May 7, to advocate for their pets and to demand that City officials allow access to the building to rescue at least seven cats and possibly one dog left inside.

 

As we reported on Wednesday, May 6, surviving displaced residents of the devastating fire that broke out in the 5-story building on April 21, along with Animal Care Centers of NYC, had been calling the City to obtain a status update on various pets trapped inside the building, and had been left frustrated by an apparent lack of urgency on the part of the City in relation to their rescue.

 

On Monday, May 4, as reported, various officials from NYC Emergency Management (ECM), the FDNY, the NYPD, NYC Department of Buildings (DOB), and Animal Care Centers of New York City (ACC) had met in the vicinity of the impacted Belmont building to discuss the best way to go about placing animal traps inside. This was after DOB had issued a full vacate order for all occupants, including the commercial businesses located on the ground level, following the 5-alarm fire.

On Thursday, May 7, representatives from Little Wanderers NYC, PETA, Animal Care Centers of NYC, John Debacker and other rescuers organized a rally at the building to call for action. They were seen armed with animal traps and were prepared to go in and lay them, they said. Meanwhile, City officials had cited the dangers of accessing the sealed building, including a collapsed roof and the collapse of an interior staircase.

 

As officials once again also gathered at the building on Thursday to further discuss the rescue situation, Rachel Ejsmont of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) spoke to about forty residents who had also gathered at the location, telling them, “We want to reunite your fur babies with you and we’re here to put pressure on the fire department, on the police department, and every animal rescuer should be out here.”

 

Officials were still seen in conversation when Ejsmont then took to a bullhorn and led the crowd into chants of, “There’s no excuse for animal abuse” and “Let the cats out!” At that point, the group of City officials, who had been standing at the corner of East 187th Street and Cambreleng then turned and walked out of sight down nearby Cambreleng Avenue.

Around 10 to 15 minutes later, as they returned to the East 187th Street building, an orange tabby cat was observed on a second-floor fire escape. When a DOB official shared that they were going to go inside, loud cheers erupted. Two members of ACC, armed with pet traps, were later witnessed entering the building alongside DOB representatives. The tabby cat seen on the fire escape was later rescued along with the body of a dog that had perished in the fire. It was returned to its family.

 

As reported on Wednesday, one resident of the burned out building, Luciano Silva, had been missing his tabby cat, “Richie,” since the fire. On seeing the tabby cat rescued from the fire escape on Thursday, Silva later brought the exhausted, sick animal to a vet. Sadly, it transpired that the tabby in question was not Ritchie, but another tabby cat.

 

Animal rights advocates and pet owners returned to the location once again on Friday, May 8, 17 days after the fire, after DOB officials agreed to accompany ACC members inside once more to see if any more pets would be caught overnight in the laid traps. Norwood News was also back on site again Friday. More to follow.

Norwood News was previously advised by the FDNY Foundation that if residents are not home when a fire breaks out and if they have pets, owners can place a notice somewhere inside the apartment near the apartment door in large lettering that indicates if there are pets in the apartment, how many, and in which room they are typically located. They said every second counts and if they can, the firefighters may do their best to rescue them, though they cannot guarantee it, of course.

According to Maryland SPCA officials, any pets who have endured a fire should be taken to the vet as soon as possible. Some effects of house fires can take several hours to become lethal, so immediate veterinary care may prevent such effects from occurring, they said. “Your veterinarian will assess your pet’s heart, lungs, eyes, and skin,” they added.

Read our prior coverage of the fire here, here, here and here. Click here for more information on various fundraisers organized for those affected by the blaze.

 

Click here to read FDNY’s fire safety tips. “During a fire, always close the door behind you!” fire officials say. “It helps contain smoke and flames, giving you precious time to escape.”

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.