Bronx woman breaks silence after mother, daughter perish in Belmont fire

<p>A Bronx woman is telling her story after losing her mother and baby daughter in a Belmont fire that killed 13 people.</p>

News 12 Staff

Jan 29, 2018, 11:29 AM

Updated 2,272 days ago

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A Bronx woman is telling her story after losing her mother and baby daughter in a Belmont fire that killed 13 people.
The fire happened on Dec. 28 inside a Prospect Avenue apartment building after the FDNY says a child was playing with oven burners.
A month later, Christine Batiz says she can't stop thinking about the last phone call she received from her mother. 
"I think about that every night. She had my daughter in her arms and she told me that they were going to die. To know that I couldn't help her hurts me," Batiz says.
She says her mother Maria and her 7-month-old baby daughter, Amora Serenity Vidal, spent their last moments lying in a bathtub inside the apartment.
Batiz was at work while fire broke out and her mother was babysitting her child.
The fire killed a total of 13 people and was the deadliest fire seen in New York City in two decades. 
Batiz says she is thankful for the support of the community and the city, and hopes to one day move on from the tragedy. 


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