Woman displaced by fire returns to Soundview apartment as she continues search for new home

The Department of Buildings has issued a partial vacate order in the building and the American Red Cross has offered those who have been displaced emergency relocation assistance.

Marisa Marcellino and Adolfo Carrion

Jan 2, 2024, 10:35 PM

Updated 280 days ago

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A fatal fire tore through an apartment building in Soundview over the weekend, and the residents of the building are now recovering from the incident.  
The Department of Buildings has issued a partial vacate order in the building and the American Red Cross has offered those who have been displaced emergency relocation assistance.  
For Nallely Rodriguez and her family, they are grateful all nine of them made it out alive – but they’re now worried about what’s next. 
“I don’t know where to go, I have four kids and right now we’re staying at her house,” said Rodriguez.   
Rodriguez tells News 12 that she returned to the apartment on Tuesday to retrieve important papers from her home, but that the landlord she has reached out to is not helping her find a new apartment.  
The president of First Management Corporation, who oversees the building, tells News 12 that there are no vacant apartments to move anyone into after the fire, and that the building is working to clean things up to have residents return as quickly as they can.  
The FDNY’s Fire Security Education Unit is now handing out smoke alarms to the community and giving out tips for how they can stay safe this winter.  
“We cannot stress enough that working smoke alarms save lives so people should be testing them once a month just to make sure that they actually work,” said firefighter Nicole Rizzi.