Families of 3 men killed by drug overdoses in New Rochelle hold vigil

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. — CBS2 has learned more about the three men who police say died of overdoses on Saturday in New Rochelle.

CBS2 spoke to family members on Sunday.

Three families united through grief, releasing balloons, writing their goodbyes, and lighting candles. Alvin Howard remembered his brother, 49-year-old Danny Howard.

“Man, that’s my best friend, my little brother, my everything,” Alvin Howard said.

Danny Howard was one of three men who New Rochelle Police say died of an overdose Saturday afternoon in the storage room of an apartment building on Fountain Place. They didn’t identify the substance.

“He loved bachata, he loved salsa, but what he loved mostly was his kids. He has two babies, a daughter and a son who he loved more than life itself,” Juan Encarnacion said of his brother, 42 year old Carl Encarnacion, who also died.

The family of the third victim didn’t wish for him to be identified. A fourth man with them called 911, disoriented, saying he was possibly overdosing. Dispatchers pinged his location, and first responders found the men. Police say that 911 caller is in critical condition.

“This ain’t like him,” Alvin Howard said. “We’re just gonna remember him as who we know of him.”

None of the four friends were residents of the building. It’s easy to access the storage room they were found in through an opening that can’t be sealed with a door because it would be a fire hazard.

“I lived here for 23 years and I never see anybody in the summer hang [out] in here with my kids and I never see anybody in there. It’s surprising what happened in there,” a resident said.

Sadness has rocked the neighborhood, whose members call it a family.

“One thing about it is we’ll be strong for each other, we’ll be strong for ourselves, and be strong for them,” Alvin Howard said.