LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — The family of the individuals who lost their lives in a house fire on Oct. 24 spoke publicly for the first time since the deadly blaze killed four people.
Abdul Adem, his daughters Anaya and Aaliyah, and his brother Ibrahim were killed in the fire that tore through the home on Langhorne Creek Street in a neighborhood near Jones Boulevard and Windmill Lane in southwest Las Vegas.
Awet and Alijah Adem, Abdul’s brother and son, respectively, discussed the family Friday. They said the loss was felt by many in the community. People left flowers, Halloween candy, and other gifts under a tree across the street from where their home once stood.
“We were together every day since we probably were born,” Awet said of his brother. “You don’t know how important that person next to you is until everyone reminds you every day.”
Since the deadly fire, community members have reminded the Adem family what Abdul meant to them daily.
“He didn’t care who you were. His main goal was just to make you happy and make things easier for you,” Awet said. “Things that we didn’t have as a kid… we want other kids to have that opportunity to be able to help their family.”
Awet said Abdul had worked to provide opportunities for the community through his basketball program, Chosen Few, now called Chosen Premier. His son Alijah, now a college basketball player, was part of the organization.
“It was at times like, even my friends from school, when I was away or on a tournament, he was at home. They would come over to my dad’s house, still without me there, and eat and hang out with him,” Alijah said of his father. “That’s just the type of person he was.”
Alijah described his father as the definition of a real man, looking after his community and his family, including his two daughters who were lost in the fire. Anaya was days away from her eighth birthday on Wednesday.
“She loved dressing up as a princess,” Awet recalled. “She loved to smile. She loved snacks, sweet stuff — when her parents [were] not looking. She was just a kid that you were like, ‘Man, this kid is happy.’”
Aliyah, who had a beautiful smile, would use her confidence to get whatever she wanted, Awet and Alijah said.
“If she wanted her way, she was going to get her way, and nobody’s going to stop her,” Alijah said.
The Adems said they’re resolved to carry on the legacy of care that their loved ones who are gone, adding that if they hadn’t passed, they would be doing the same for those who remain.
A memorial service for the Adem family is scheduled for Thursday at Central Church in Henderson. Doors open at 9:30 a.m., with the service set to begin at 11 a.m.
