Family devastated after teen killed in raging Belmont apartment fire
Family members say they spent hours desperately searching for Michelle Gonzalez, calling her phone throughout the night—only to later learn from the morgue that she did not survive.
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A 17-year-old girl is among two people killed after a massive fire tore through an apartment building in Belmont Tuesday afternoon.
Family members say they spent hours desperately searching for Michelle Gonzalez, calling her phone throughout the night—only to later learn from the morgue that she did not survive.
“Why was she left behind… why did we have to lose her… why,” Gonzalez’s sister-in-law, Anayeli Guzman, cried.
Fire officials say the flames quickly engulfed the building at 660 East 187th St., spreading rapidly up stairwells and walls. FDNY chiefs say the structure was not built to withstand a fire of this magnitude. Before firefighters could fully get inside, part of the building collapsed, injuring nearly a dozen people.
Gonzalez was visiting a friend at the time of the fire. Her family is now left with painful questions.
“But how was he able to come out of the building and she wasn’t if they were together…” Guzman said.
Outside her home, loved ones have set up a candlelight vigil in her memory. Family members describe Gonzalez as more than just a teenager—saying she was a loving aunt who adored her young niece.
“It hurts me that she loved my little girl so much and that she’s not going to see her grow up,” a family member said.
Fire marshals have not yet determined the cause of the blaze.
The family has organized a GoFundMe to help cover funeral expenses, which has already raised more than $10,000. But for those who knew Gonzalez, the emotional loss is immeasurable.
