At least two people have died and 17 others, including seven children, sustained injuries after a three-storey building collapsed near an active construction site in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York.
The incident occurred on Wednesday, with four of the injured victims reportedly in critical condition as emergency responders continued searching the debris for possible survivors.
The building reportedly collapsed into an adjoining excavation site, trapping several people beneath the rubble.
Images from the scene showed firefighters navigating piles of debris, with sections of the building’s walls destroyed and the contents of several apartments, including bedrooms and household belongings, exposed.
More than 250 firefighters and paramedics were deployed to the scene, using drones, search dogs and chainsaws to locate and rescue those trapped.
New York City Fire Department Commissioner, Lillian Bonsignore, said the rescue operation could take several hours because authorities were yet to establish how many people remained trapped.
“We do not know how many people are still in the collapse zone, and this will be a prolonged operation,” Bonsignore told reporters.
She confirmed the two deaths but did not disclose the identities or ages of the victims.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani commended emergency workers for carrying out rescue operations despite the dangerous conditions at the site.
He described the area as having “precarious wreckage to navigate and dangerous voids beneath the surface.”
“I want to ask New Yorkers to please take a moment to pray for those who passed away today and all of those who are mourning their loss,” Mamdani said during a news conference.
Meanwhile, the New York City Department of Buildings confirmed that inspectors had been deployed to assess the structural stability of neighbouring properties and support recovery efforts.
The department’s commissioner, Ahmed Tigani, said construction workers were carrying out excavation activities when the building collapsed.
He disclosed that developers had obtained approval for a three-storey building at the site but were seeking additional permission to construct a nine-storey structure.
Authorities have yet to establish the cause of the collapse, while investigations and search-and-rescue operations remain ongoing.
