Service held for 5 victims of Belmont fire

<p>A funeral service was held Monday for five family members who died in a Belmont fire that killed 13 people in total.</p>

News 12 Staff

Jan 8, 2018, 11:06 AM

Updated 2,592 days ago

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A funeral service was held Monday for five family members who died in a Belmont fire that killed 13 people in total.
The service was held at R.G. Ortiz Funeral Home in Washington Heights for Francis Holt, 27, his wife Karen Stewart-Francis, 37, their two daughters, Kylie, 2, and Kelesha, 7, and the couple's 19-year-old niece, Shawntay Young.
Holt was the 13th victim of the fire and was recently taken off life support, according to the family's GoFundMe page.
Dozens dressed in black as they poured into the funeral home to pay their respects.
News 12 was told that the family would be buried in Jamaica following the service. Loved ones are trying to raise money to fly the bodies back to Jamaica.
The Dec. 28 fire ravaged a 29-unit building on Prospect Avenue. The FDNY says an unattended 3-year-old who was playing with a stove caused the flames to spark and, because the apartment door was left open, the fire spread more easily.
Services for the fire's youngest victim, 7-month-old Amora Batiz, and her grandmother were reportedly held on Sunday.