Journalist Who Died in Harlem Fire Remembered at Memorial

Fazil Khan died on Feb. 23 in a fire-induced by a lithium-ion battery that powers e-bikes in his Harlem apartment building. Columbia Journalism School organized a memorial service on Feb. 28 at the Brown Institute in Pulitzer Hall to commemorate his life.

“I am keenly aware, that nothing I say can diminish the weight of the loss of Fazil Khan,” said Jelani Cobb, the Dean of Columbia’s Journalism School at the memorial hosted by his friends, colleagues, professors and fellow Columbia J-Schoolers. “If we are truly fortunate, we are able to pass along some of what we learned in our time here. I have learned in the past few days that Mr. Khan was fortunate in these many regards with the exception of his years.”

The event drew a gathering of individuals who offered heartfelt words and shared cherished memories of Khan and included video clips featuring Khan, some accompanied by Urdu Ghazals, a form of poetry he deeply cherished.

Ravish Kumar, one of India’s most esteemed journalists and among Khan’s favorites, concluded the memorial with a video message. “I believe that for anybody to be a good reporter, it at least takes 10 years of experience, without which you can’t notice the small important details required in journalism. But I was shocked to see that Fazil’s reporting was so strong despite his young age,” Kumar said. “We’re often looking for people who would act as a cane for older journalists like us. But that cane has left us, your friend and a great journalist for us is no more.”

Lithium-ion battery-induced fires have been a significant concern in the city. In 2023, lithium-ion batteries powering e-bikes were responsible for 267 fires, causing 150 injuries and 18 fatalities. Khan’s death marks the first casualty attributed to such incidents in 2024.

The fire started due to a charging lithium-ion battery on the third floor in an apartment shared by six delivery workers. The fire at the building, located at the intersection of West 149th St and 2 St. Nicholas Pl. was the 31st incident caused by lithium-ion batteries in the city this year. Tenants in the building had complained to the landlord about electric bikes chained to the outside fence and raised concerns about the potential for fires from charging e-bike batteries, reported The City.

The deadly blaze spread rapidly because an apartment door on the third floor was left open and city house inspectors also discovered a non-functional self-closing door to the roof which contributed to a chimney effect phenomenon in the building with thick smoke covering it instantly THE CITY, a non-profit news service disclosed. Firefighters who reached the scene less than three minutes after receiving a 911 call had to rescue three residents from a fifth floor window using a rare rope rescue down the outside of the building because the fast spreading fire and smoke had shut off an escape route.

Khan, who resided on fourth floor lost his life while 22 other individuals sustained injuries . Khan was rushed to Harlem Hospital when evacuated by firefighters but was not able to be revived. His body to be flown back to India, where his grieving family, including his mother and five siblings, awaited his return.

The Consulate General of India expressed condolences on X, “Saddened to learn about death of 27 years old Indian national Mr. Fazil Khan in an unfortunate fire incident in an apartment building in Harlem, NY. @IndiainNewYork is in touch with late Mr. Fazil Khan’s family & friends. We continue to extend all possible assistance in repatriation of his mortal remains to India.”

Khan, a skilled journalist grew up in New Delhi and studied journalism at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication in the same city. He held diverse positions, starting as a copy editor at the Business Standard before transitioning to the role of a data correspondent for CNN-News18 between 2018 and 2020. In 2020, Khan enrolled at Columbia Journalism School, where he pursued the M.S. Data Journalism program. After graduating he was selected for a competitive postgraduate fellowship with Columbia Journalism Investigations.

“Fazil was a hardworking data journalist who did his job passionately. He was also a good friend, a kind human being, and what I later understood, a lovely son to his parents. His hard work and passion led him to Columbia and we were so very proud of his achievements. With him gone so young and full of dreams, I have lost a good friend and someone I am proud to call a colleague. There weren’t many like him,” said Sheikh Saaliq who worked with Khan at CNN-News18 during the 2019 Indian general elections.

As a Global Migration Fellow, Fazil contributed to a project in partnership with The CITY, Type Investigations, and City Limits called Missing Them. Khan dedicated his time to the project for more than a year to highlight the inadequacies of the New York City Department of Education to provide services to students who lost family members to COVID-19. His investigation revealed that roughly one in every 200 children in New York City had lost a parent or close caregiver to COVID-19, a rate twice as high as the national average across the United States.

“Fazil’s journalism wasn’t just about the numbers. He reported with a kind heart and a sharp ear on New York families like the Fletchers and the Noboas, whose kids had all lost caregivers, capturing their stories with great empathy,” mentioned The City’s statement on mourning his death.

Meghnad Bose, a current MS in Data Journalism student at Columbia reached out to Khan in July 2022 seeking guidance and information about the program as he was considering applying and described Khan as kind, helpful and patient.

“I’ve had so many chats with people at Columbia today and we’ve been discussing how every person who’s been quoted or who has written about him or has shared about him on social media seems to be saying that Fazil was such a kind and compassionate person. That’s a testament to how Fazil touched people’s lives whether he knew them for a bit or he knew them for years,” Bose said.

Bose had reached out to Khan in December to meet, but Khan was planning a trip to India for the next few weeks. They agreed to meet upon his return. Unfortunately, Khan passed away before they could meet again.

“I read that he was slated to present at a couple of panels at NICAR, which is a computational journalism conference and it is going to happen in Baltimore in a couple of weeks. Incidentally, that’s a conference that our entire class of data journalism students at Columbia is going for. So we would have all got a chance to meet Fazil. It’s just heartbreaking that he’s no more,” Bose said.

His friend, Paroma Soni, a reporter at Politico collected funds through a memorial website. “As we honor his life and remember him fondly, we have decided to raise funds in his memory. When the dust settles, we will use it to cover funeral costs if necessary, and make charitable contributions on Fazil’s behalf to causes he cared deeply about, including the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Islamic life centers in NYC,” mentions the obituary. The online memorial has raised more than $20,000 through contributions.

At the time of his death, Khan was working at the Hechinger Report, a non-profit newsroom focusing on education, as a data journalist. “We are devastated by the loss of such a great colleague and wonderful person, and our hearts go out to his family. He will be dearly missed,” said Hechinger Report in an email.

“I don’t know that anyone has ever made that positive a first impression on me anywhere, let alone via a tiny Zoom screen,” said Sarah Butrymowicz, Hechinger’s senior editor for investigations and Khan’s direct supervisor. “You could just tell right away that he was such a thoughtful person, really smart.”

At Hechinger, Khan undertook significant projects, such as Arizona’s habit of handing out suspensions for attendance violations, which was hindering students’ academic progress. His work on this project ultimately contributed to the proposal of legislation in Arizona aimed at addressing the issue.

At the time of his passing, Khan was completing a project focused on school discipline data, in partnership with USA Today.