In 2014, Omar Alhaj Ali left his home country, Syria, with his younger brother Mohammad. The two brothers arrived in the UK seeking a safe haven from the ongoing war that had plagued their homeland. Two years later, they moved into a flat on the 14th floor of Grenfell Tower in London.
On the night of the tragic fire in June 2017, Omar lost his beloved brother Mohammad, who was a civil engineering student at the time of his death. In an emotional interview with the BBC’s UK correspondent Adina Campbell, Omar shared his memories of that horrific night.
He recalled hearing a knock on the door at around 1am and opening it to find his neighbor, whom he knew well, frantically urging him and his brother to leave the building. Despite his initial confusion and disbelief, Omar knew he had to act fast and wake up Mohammad, who was still sleeping.
What happened next still haunts Omar to this day. As the two brothers started making their way down the stairwell, the smoke and heat overwhelmed them and they were separated. As Omar descended further down, he realized that Mohammad was no longer with him. He tried calling his brother’s phone, but it went straight to voicemail.
The Grenfell Tower fire was the deadliest residential fire in the UK since the Second World War, claiming the lives of 72 people. Omar’s tragic loss is just one of many devastating stories of grief and trauma caused by the fire. Today, he continues to seek justice for his brother and all those affected by the tragedy
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
