Woman dies after saving the lives of her 3 children in a fire

A clandestine shelter with capacity for more than 70 immigrants was discovered during a control operation by firefighters in a small commercial establishment in Queens, New York, authorities announced on Tuesday.

The owner of the place, who identified himself as Ebou Sarr, is a 47-year-old Senegalese who has been living in the American metropolis for several years. The man explained that he welcomed up to “about 74 people”, the vast majority from Senegal.

Sarr assured that he seeks to help his compatriots who cannot find shelter, while New York in parallel struggles to welcome tens of thousands of newcomers.

Firefighters discovered the site Monday afternoon in the working-class neighborhood of Queens, following a neighborhood complaint that reported a pile of electric bicycles in a yard.

These vehicles have multiplied in the city due to home delivery services.

“During the inspection, units discovered dangerous living conditions in approximately 40 beds on the ground floor and in the basement,” firefighters told reporters.

“The commercial space on the first floor of the building and the basement were illegally transformed into bedrooms, with 14 bunk beds and 13 beds squeezed together on the two floors,” added the city’s building inspection service.

Hit by a recurring real estate crisis and the cost of living, aggravated by the Covid-19 pandemic and inflation, New York has also been facing for months the emergency that involves hosting tens of thousands of asylum seekers who cross into United States from the border with Mexico.

The city of 8.5 million people has adapted hotels and built facilities to house more than 160,000 migrants since spring 2022, of whom 68,000 were still housed in the city in January.

The rules have also been tightened, moving to limited reception now to 30 days for single adults and 60 days for families. After that period, migrants must resubmit their application.

“What we discovered last night is also a symptom of a broader housing shortage crisis, which we have already talked about many times,” New York Deputy Mayor of Housing, María Torres-Springer, told the media.

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