Brooklyn Building Collapse Kills Six as Rain Approaches
Rescuers in New York City recovered four additional bodies from the rubble of a collapsed mixed-use structure, raising the total death count to six.
By Lauren Foster ·
The number of people killed in a Brooklyn building collapse reached six early Thursday as emergency crews continued to search the wreckage.
Four bodies were removed from the site between Wednesday night and the start of Thursday. Two other deaths had been confirmed earlier on Wednesday. The New York City Fire Department verified the new fatalities.
At least 17 people were hospitalized with injuries. Four of those patients remain in critical condition. Seven of the total casualties are children, according to authorities. Officials did not specify which children died.
The collapse occurred Wednesday afternoon at a three-story mixed-use building. The structure housed apartments above ground-floor commercial space. It fell at the edge of a construction site where workers were excavating an empty lot for a new project.
Most of the debris settled into the construction pit next door. An adjacent building that shared a wall with the collapsed structure is still standing. Its shared wall was severed, leaving rooms exposed to the air. Clothes and bedroom contents were visible inside the open structure.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the scene as challenging due to precarious wreckage and dangerous voids beneath the surface. He stated that this type of rescue is what the FDNY trains for. Approximately 250 firefighters were assigned to the scene.
FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said the teams are performing dangerous and perilous work. She noted that every move is choreographed. One firefighter sustained minor injuries during the operation.
Crews used pickaxes, power saws, and rescue dogs to probe the pile. Orange buckets were used to move debris. On Wednesday night, firefighters dug a hole and pulled a living woman out on a stretcher. She was rushed to an ambulance.
Heavy rain is forecast for New York City on Thursday afternoon. It is not yet clear how the weather will impact the search efforts. The cause of the collapse is under investigation.
New York City buildings commissioner Ahmed Tigani noted that construction workers were excavating the neighboring lot when the building fell. City records list an architect, a property owner, and a general contractor as being associated with the project. Phone and email messages seeking comment were left with those parties on Wednesday.
Anderson Velez, a resident of the building, was at work when his wife called him. She told him she and their two children, ages seven and two, were trapped under rubble. The call cut off after she screamed for help. Velez later learned his family was pulled from the debris alive.
