Artist Le Sa Long crafted a series of seven paintings within three days to commemorate 56 dead victims of a recent fatal fire in Hanoi, while also conveying his appreciation for the relentless efforts of both emergency responders and compassionate civilians who fought the blaze and aided the struggling victims.

Long, a member of the Ho Chi Minh City Fine Arts Association, joined numerous Vietnamese citizens from across Vietnam in closely monitoring news about the fire at an apartment block in Thanh Xuan District of the capital on Tuesday night last week.

The conflagration hit the apartment block down a narrow alley on Khuong Ha Street in the district and claimed the lives of 56 people while injuring 37 others.

The tragedy inspired Long to dedicate nearly three days to crafting seven paintings in remembrance of the lost victims.

Out of the seven paintings, five form a sequential narrative. 

The initial one portrays the scene of the tragic incident, while the subsequent paintings describe the efforts of emergency responders extinguishing the flames and rescuing individuals from the engulfed building.

The last two paintings consist of individual portraits. 

In one, he depicts Nguyen Dang Van, a 30-year-old deliveryman from Bac Ninh Province in northern Vietnam, who valiantly assisted in the rescue of nine people from the fire. 

In the other portrait, Long painted Pham Quoc Viet, founder and leader of First Aid Support Angels, a civilian charity organization committed to offering prompt first aid assistance for all accidents in Hanoi. 

Viet and his team also provided aid at the scene of the fire last Tuesday night.

“If I have the opportunity to meet these two brave young people, Pham Quoc Viet and Nguyen Dang Van, I will present them with their portrait paintings as a gesture of gratitude for their fearless acts of rescuing people without regard to their own safety,” Long said.

Besides, Long is currently working on another oil painting measuring 120cm x 160cm, centered around a rare moment of respite among the firefighters after they successfully combated the deadly blaze on Tuesday night.

He plans to put this painting up for auction, with the proceeds to be used as support for the families of the 56 deceased victims.

The artist said he worked diligently to finish the first seven paintings on Sunday night, just before various Hanoi departments and organizations observed a minute of silence in memory of the 56 victims on Monday morning.

The result of his work, however, did not feel rushed at all.

Long conveyed the poignant incident with a touch of compassion and sensitivity, paying tribute to the fire brigade and promoting fire prevention and fighting in a gentle and impactful manner.

He agreed with Hoang Song Viet, a prolific composer of traditional southern Vietnam music and performance ‘cai luong,’ on transforming this heart-wrenching incident into works of literature and art as a means to raise people’s awareness about the importance of fire prevention and fighting, particularly in densely-populated urban areas like Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City.

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