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Friends still message 12-year-old Grenfell victim to feel close

Pals maintain a connection with Jessica through old Snapchat messages

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Friends of a 12-year-old girl who died in the Grenfell Tower fire last June still message her on their mobile phones in an effort to stay close to her.

Jessica Urbano Ramirez became one of the most recognisable victims of the disaster in West London that claimed at least 71 lives when her photograph was widely distributed on posters and social media during the chaotic aftermath of the blaze to try and locate her.

Tragically, her remains were later discovered on the 23rd floor of the 24-storey building.

Reggie Yates takes a closer look at tributes to the victims of Grenfell (Credit: BBC)

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Last night documentary Searching for Grenfell’s Lost Lives aired on BBC2, and presenter Reggie Yates said he hoped it would help reveal who the men, women and children resident in Grenfell were before they were names and faces on a memorial wall.

He explained: “I understand what it means to live in a community like that. And I understand the lazy preconceptions that sometimes exist.

“They are not places of decay and hopelessness, they are places of hope and energy and ambition. That’s the spirit I wanted to capture by uncovering the stories of those who lived there.”

Speaking to two of Jessica’s friends, it was clear she will live long in their memory.

“I keep my blinds closed, I don’t look out,” said one girl, who lives in a flat near to Grenfell and can see the charred ruins from her bedroom window.

“I don’t want to see Grenfell Tower out of the window.

The ruins of Grenfell Tower (Credit: BBC)

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“Jessica is the first person I have ever known to have died,” the friend continued.

“Obviously I miss talking to her. You know someone who could hold a long, long conversation is Jessica,” she smiled.

Another friend demonstrated on her mobile phone how she revisits Jessica’s Snapchat messages when she misses her friend.

Jessica’s friends watch her Snapchat messages to keep her memory alive (Credit: BBC)

Clicking on a message from Jessica that asked ‘If I died tomorrow, how would you remember me?’, her friend answered: “Her big, bright smile.”

“She’s a really pretty girl. Look at her hair,” the first, unnamed friend said, showing an image of Jessica from Snapchat.

“She talked to everyone, don’t matter who you are. She was just such a bubbly, happy person.”

Jessica’s friends remember she was proud of her heritage (Credit: BBC)

Jessica, her friends said, was also fiercely proud of her Colombian background.

“She would tell people: ‘I’m a Latino’. She was so proud of her heritage. And that’s something I always admired about her.

“She was proud of who she was.”

Reggie takes in a Grenfell tribute featuring Jessica’s likeness (Credit: BBC)

Joking about how Jessica would object to her eyes being painted green in a public art tribute to Grenfell’s victims, one pal admitted she still texts Jessica’s phone to maintain a connection.

“We send messages to her,” she explained.

“‘How are you?’ ‘How are you feeling today?’ ‘Are you watching over me?’. It’s a way to feel close to her.”

Viewers found Jessica’s friends’ recollections both ‘harrowing’ and ‘traumatic’ – but the show itself came in for plaudits from thousands and thousands of tweets.

Reggie Yates: Searching for Grenfell’s Lost Lives is available to watch now on iPlayer.


Robert Leigh
Freelance writer

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