Relatives say Massachusetts assisted-living blaze gutted a tough community

Gabriel House had seen better days but for residents and their families it was the center of a caring district The -unit assisted-living facility that burned Sunday night killing nine people so far opened in in Fall River Massachusetts Certain photos on its Facebook page show neat rooms but older-looking carpeting and furniture However the facility had been repeatedly cited for tardiness in reporting feasible vitality and safety incidents according to regulators the greater part modern review Displaced residents and relatives also have described of substandard conditions but also say it was a place where people from tough circumstances ascertained each other Several say Gabriel House was emblematic of Fall River a fiercely proud city despite a years-long downturn The city of tight-knit neighborhoods has been shaped by immigrants who came to work in now-dwinded textile mills including a large population of Portuguese descent Fall River rallies around Gabriel House A memorial of candles and balloons that grew at the site Tuesday and Wednesday People held a vigil there and attendees talked about the importance of locality Krista Cormier a Fall River resident mentioned the fire has been heavy on my heart all week Anytime something happens people just come together just because of this Cormier explained beating on her heart This city is full of love and sponsorship But there were notes of discord Gabriel House owner Dennis Etzkorn has commented he is cooperating with investigators but Mayor Paul Coogan commented he should have been at the memorial and has criticized him for being hard to reach in the aftermath of the fire To me he should be down here every day Coogan mentioned A long history of tragedy Fall River has endured tragedy and debate from agents accusing Victorian spinster Lizzie Borden of killing her father and stepmother with an ax in to convicting wunderkind Mayor Jasiel Correira of fraud in The Gabriel House assisted living facility opened on Olive Street nearly a century after the coastal city nicknamed Spindle City roared with roughly textile mills and a population of people Largest part of those mills were silenced by the Great Depression while the city declared bankruptcy in These days Fall River s population is now about Census figures show The city s median household income of nearly is a little more than half the state s median while the poverty rate is more than double that of Massachusetts state The city is trying to revitalize its downtown and waterfront and while local and state officers are working to bring in more affordable housing Gabriel House was home to beloved family members Her granddaughter didn t like the assisted-living center but -year-old Eleanor Willett desired something that left her money to play the slots at a casino She earned too much to qualify for Medicaid but not enough to afford a higher-priced assisted-living facility Holly Mallowes described The Associated Press Tuesday She stated I don t need much but a roof over my head and someplace to put my sewing machine Mallowes announced A Massachusetts native Willett spent more than years as a secretary and even worked briefly as a cocktail waitress her granddaughter explained Her home was perpetually a base for everyone in her family Mallowes explained My mom worked a lot and Grammy s was perpetually a place we called home explained Mallowes We lived with her often She was very strong She outlived two husbands and raised five children She was absolutely a gratification Kim Mackin was a violist who performed in Boston-area orchestras according to her nephew Austin Mackin She was described in a declaration from family members as gifted beyond words We will all miss Kimmy the declaration read Beyond being exceptionally kind meager knew that she was a brilliant musician Mackin received a full scholarship to the Manhattan School of Music and after graduating toured the world as first chair viola Breonna Cestodio described her -year-old uncle Richard Rochon as a very quiet guy yet a great guy He kept to himself she recounted reporters He was a sharpshooter in the Army He loved getting visits from all of his nieces and nephews Rochon moved into Gabriel House about a year ago Cestodio had little good to say about the facility remarking that it constantly seemed hot inside the building A history of hard times and fires The city motto We ll try dates to the Great Fire of which destroyed much of the center of town Other large fires altered the city forever in the s and s The Gabriel House fire is the latest mishap for the city to deal with and it will reported Frank Sousa director of the Saab Center for Portuguese Studies at University of Massachusetts Lowell These are people who had tough lives and in Fall River located new opportunities he mentioned This ten years from now years from now will just be one of the numerous things that have happened in the city that have required resilience