‘They were a burnt offering’

A fire at a Brooklyn home early Saturday left seven children dead. The city's fire commissioner said the blaze may have been caused by a hotplate that had been left on overnight. Photo: AP

Grieving ... Father Gabriel Sassoon broke down at the funeral of his seven children that perished in the house fire. Picture: Paul Martinka/Splash News Source: Supplied

HE wept as he recited the names, saying they are all "angels" now.

A Brooklyn father who suffered the unthinkable loss of seven children when fire ripped through his home brought thousands of mourners to tears on Sunday during their funeral.

"They all had faces of angels. Hashem [God] knows how much I love them," said a sobbing Gabriel Sassoon.

"People forget what's important in life. My children were unbelievable. They were the best.

"But the truth is, every child is the best. Every child is the most beautiful child there is in the world. Every child is like that."

SEVEN CHILDREN PERISH IN FIRE IN BROOKLYN, NEW YORK

The Orthodox Jewish dad broke down as he recited the names of his dead children, ages 5 to 16.

He called them a "sacrifice to the community."

"They were a burnt offering. I lost everything in the fire. Seven pure sheep. Those are my seven children," said Mr Sassoon, who was at a religious retreat in Manhattan when flames tore through his Brooklyn home early Saturday.

After the funeral, maternal grandmother Frances Jemal sobbed while touching the seven coffins, which were draped in dark cloth with Hebrew lettering, as they were wheeled out of the synagogue.

Gabriel was supported by two fellow mourners as he walked in a daze past the 2000 people who filled the streets around the funeral home.

A procession of black cars carried the coffins to John F. Kennedy Airport for a flight to Israel, where they will be buried in Jerusalem's Har HaMenuchot Cemetery, The Yeshiva World web site reported.

Mourners ... People fill the streets near a Brooklyn chapel for a eulogy in remembrance of the seven siblings who perished in a fire. Picture: Edmund J Coppa/Splash News Source: Supplied

The bodies arrived in Israel on Monday (11:30 PM AEDT) for burial — along with their devastated dad.

Airport officials, police and members of the Chevra Kadisha, a religious group that handles the dead, set up a ring of barriers outside the El Al jetliner at Ben Gurion International Airport before passengers exited the plane.

The seven plain wooden caskets were removed from the plane and loaded into vans. The bodies the children, ages 5 to 16, were taken directly to the cemetery.

Support ... Mourners gather outside of Shomrei Hadas Chapels during the funeral service listening over a loudspeaker. Picture: AP Photo/Julio Cortez Source: AP

Mr Sassoon went to the cemetery wearing the same clothing he wore at the funeral in Brooklyn on Sunday. He was surrounded by family, as he hugged and shook hands with mourners.

The funeral is scheduled for Monday afternoon in Israel.

Authorities say the fire was ignited by a hotplate that malfunctioned while keeping food warm. It had been left on so the family could observe a religious rule against working on the Sabbath.

The children — Yaakob, 5, Sara, 6, Moshe, 8, Yeshua, 10, Rivkah, 11, David, 12, and Eliane, 16 — were either declared dead at the scene or at hospitals.

Mom Gayle Sassoon, 45, and her second-eldest child, Tziporah, 15, both escaped the fire by jumping from the home's second floor.

Angels ... Four of the seven children that died in Brooklyn fire. Rivkah, 11 (L), Eliane, 16, (top middle) and only survivor Tzipara, 15 on top right. Boy in green shirt also perished in the fire but no name at this time. Picture: Supplied Source: New York Post

Witnesses heard one child crying, "Mommy! Mommy! Help me!" from inside the house, while Gayle, burned and bloodied, pleaded, "My kids are in there! Get them out! Get them out!"

Gayle and Tziporah both remained hospitalised on Sunday, with the mother listed in critical condition and fighting for her life in a hyperbaric chamber.

Sources said neither was aware of the fate that befell the rest of their family.

"I have no idea how [Tziporah] will deal with this once her body heals. This is beyond terrible," a family friend said while leaving the hospital.

Grieving ... father Gabriel Sassoon is driven away after the funeral for his seven children that died in a house fire. Mr Sassoon was away on a religious getaway over the Sabbath. Picture: Kena Betancur/Getty Images/AFP Source: AFP

In a tragic twist, Gayle was going to take all eight kids to her parents in New Jersey on Friday, but stayed home to avoid the bad weather, said New York State politician Dov Hikind.

"The family had been planning to spend Shabbos [the Sabbath] in New Jersey, but had changed their minds because of the snowstorm. And then this happened," Mr Hikind said outside the fire scene.

"It's an unbelievable tragedy."

The Sassoons moved to the house about a year and a half ago from Israel, where they had lived for about 15 years.

Nomi Weinfeld, a former neighbour of the families in Jerusalem, said she was friendly with Gayle, whom she called a "wonderful person" and an "iron woman."

"I love her Brooklyn accent. She is very wholesome. She's very focused on doing the right thing and being a good mother," Ms Weinfeld said.

She added that her own kids used to play with the Sassoon children and described Tziporah as "a tad quieter" and "more serious" than her sisters.

Mayor Bill de Blasio is seen inside the house where seven children perished. Picture: Kena Betancur/Getty Images/AFP Source: AFP

"The younger kids were very close. Very best friends. They spoke just last week," she said.

"They were sweet and polite but fun. Zippy, funny. Just great company. "

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, said officials were still investigating, "then we're going to decide from there in terms of public education" on preventing such fires.

Sen. Charles Schumer said "the entire city is in mourning" while attending a vigil in front of the scorched home on Sunday night.

"There's no greater loss than when a parent buries a child," Mr Schumer said. "The Sassoons have buried seven."

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