subaw0067
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A scientific identification has to be made, either by DNA, dental records, or fingerprints.
NY NY - Manhattan, WhtFem, UP104647, 70-80, found unresponsive after residential fire, tentative name Gilda Abramowitz, March 2023
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AliceInPain
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Eeh... that's what I said? "Then they could contact her relatives for DNA to verify"
???
subaw0067
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You asked why she hasn't been identified if she was the resident for 50 years. You cant force a family member to give comparative DNA, if you can even find the family members.
AliceInPain
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Gilda's relatives are very easy to find, and LE have not contacted them for DNA or anything else.
As to "contact the ME listed on NamUs"... I have no idea what that means. Like I said, I saw this thread come up in a Google search result yesterday, and joined so I could add my two cents. I haven't even read every single post in this entire thread.
ralyla
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Wow, first, welcome to WebSleuths! Thank you for letting us know and your information may be the final piece to the puzzle. If you are comfortable, maybe reach out to the NamUs and/or NYME contacts to pass along the information you have?
AliceInPain
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Thank you for your simple, easy to understand information and instructions, I don't think I'm too good at that =D
I read a few articles from recent years re the ME of NYC and he sounds like he really wants all these cases solved.
In one article he was urging people to submit their DNA to his office so the UIDs may be identified. But I was wondering what if they don't, but upload to GedMatch? Does his office use resources like DDP, Othram, all the other amazing teams of DNA researchers out there?
(If no one finds that article I'll find it tomorrow and post the link.)
I just got off the phone with a guy from the NYC Medical Examiner's office. I gave him what information I could—that the phone number I had for "my" Gilda showed up linked to the address of the fire in Google results, the names of the businesses where I worked with her, and the name and location of her brother. Hopefully this leads somewhere positive.
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fred&edna
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I know this seems like a crazy question but do you remember the eye color of your Gilda A?
The woman found deceased in the apartment fire reportedly had blue eyes. While eye color can change or be "off" after death, I am curious if this is something you remember. Of note, I'm not sure I'd remember the eye color of any of my coworkers years later... unless they were distinct.
Sadly, no.
fred&edna
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Don't feel bad about it... I doubt most of us (if any of us) would remember that kind of detail.
The Gilda I knew was definitely a heavy smoker. When she worked after normal business hours, she would close the door to her office so she could smoke while working.NamUs #UP104647
Sex/Race/Ethnicity: White Female
Estimated Age Range: 70-80
Height: 5'6" (measured)
Weight: 97lbs (measured)
DBF: March 24th, 2023
Location: Manhattan, New York
Circumstances of Recovery: Found unresponsive in an apartment after a residential fire. Tentative name of Gilda Abramowitz, but this name has not been verified and family has not been notified.
Condition: recognizable face (no photo on NaMus)
Hair Color/Description: Gray or Partially Gray, wavy, approximately 7"
Eye Color: Blue
FDNY: Woman killed in Kips Bay apartment fire
The flames broke out around 12:30 a.m. on the second floor of a building on East 31st Street.www.cbsnews.com
Woman, 76, killed in Manhattan apartment fire
A 76-year-old Manhattan woman lost her life early Friday to a fire that ripped through her apartment, authorities said. The FDNY said it responded to a call at 12:35 a.m. about smoke coming from a …www.nydailynews.com
The woman was declared dead at the scene. Her identity was not immediately released.
“She was quiet and didn’t go anywhere since her husband died last summer,” said Boris Sufayed, who owns a barber shop next to the fire scene.
Sufayed said the woman’s husband died last summer. “He went to the hospital and he never came back.”
“She was a good lady. She was quiet. She smoked a lot — 90% of the time, she was smoking.”
---
A 1967 article from The Reporter Dispatch in White Planes, New York lists Glinda as a survivor in her father, Harold C. Weiss' obituary:
View attachment 429460
In 2020, the NY Daily News listed Mrs. Abramowitz's name in the Unclaimed Fund listing and it includes the same apartment address as the article regarding the fire:
View attachment 429461
Marriage License Info from Ancestry:
Name Gilda Weiss Gender Female Marriage License Date 1962 Marriage License Place Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA Spouse Harry Abramowitz License Number 10171
An article about her husband, his obituary, and Find a Grave:
95-year-old veteran still shows up to work every day
Twenty-one years ago, Harry Abramowitz retired at the age of 74. Three months later, he took at new job at an independent medical evaluation company now called ExamWorks. Now, just two days before his 95th birthday, Harry can still be found at his desk in Roseland, NJ performing his duties as...www.fox5ny.com
Harry Abramowitz Obituary - Dix Hills, NY
Celebrate the life of Harry Abramowitz, leave a kind word or memory and get funeral service information care of I. J. Morris.www.dignitymemorial.com
Harry Abramowitz (1924-2022) - Find a Grave...
www.findagrave.com
I cannot find any record of children or next of kin. I'm wondering if this poor woman was the last surviving relative. I'll keep searching records in an attempt to determine any next of kin.
Again, I believe she was never married, and her birth name was Abramowitz. This Gilda Weiss/Abramowitz is a different woman.
I was in further contact with somebody from the ME's office. We arranged for them to send me a photo to try to identify the victim, but I couldn't. It had been too long since I'd last seen her (14-15 years), and the woman in the photo had facial injuries (from the fire, I assume).
I tried to contact the nephew (and his wife) via Facebook Messenger, but they never even read the messages. I tried to phone him at the only available number - turns out it was his law office. I spoke to a paralegal and left a message, but apparently the ME had already called (based on info I had provided, I think), but he was uncooperative. I think there had been some sort of estrangement between Gilda and her brother/nephew. Not sure what else can be done.
I tried to contact the nephew (and his wife) via Facebook Messenger, but they never even read the messages. I tried to phone him at the only available number - turns out it was his law office. I spoke to a paralegal and left a message, but apparently the ME had already called (based on info I had provided, I think), but he was uncooperative. I think there had been some sort of estrangement between Gilda and her brother/nephew. Not sure what else can be done.
In general, on going issues for owners of such properties would be:
- A sense of that due to the rent control measure (freezes or greatly reduces rent increases) and the difficulty of evicting people in NYC, they have effectively lost control of their own private property.
- I dont know if rent control is linked to individual tenants (ends with death), or is centered on certain rental units and is passable to new tenants?
But.... my general understanding is that rent control and the restrictions, the complications it brings, and the associated likes / dislikes are very well known concepts in NYC. Thus, they would seem to less likely be a "surprise" issue.
As a side note, a SFC building owner once mentioned to me that he and his wife were working near 24/7/365 and wanted to expand their restaurant. Some spaces, however, were classified as 'residential'. The tenants were unemployed (able), used drugs and harassed their employees. Yet....they were protected under SFC's rent control.
Susikatze
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That is heartbreaking. Could you contact the Hebrew Free Burial Association so that they claim her and give her a decent burial? They handle cases of estranged Jews who are not claimed and buried by family.
What We Do - Hebrew Free Burial Association
www.hebrewfreeburial.org
Kermitskorner
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Thank you for taking the time to help with your personal experience! It is so nice to see that there are still others in this world that keep an eye out for people. I can't imagine how emotional this must have been for you. Sending you and Gilda positive energy today.
iulia
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She was identified as Gilda G Abramowitz and is now in NamUs Unclaimed - UCP119364
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)
By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.
www.namus.gov
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