Eight Dead After Brooklyn Building Collapses Into Adjacent Construction Pit
A three-storey building on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn collapsed into a neighboring excavation site, killing eight people and injuring 18, with authorities investigating possible criminal liability.
Eight people were killed and 18 injured when a three-storey building at 1321 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn collapsed into an adjacent construction pit on Wednesday afternoon. The structure, built in the 1930s, housed apartments and a store, while the neighboring site was undergoing excavation for a new development that will include 64 residential units and a grocery store.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the scene, noting that workers who survived briefly turned back to dig victims from the rubble. Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said firefighters arrived within minutes and called their actions "heroic". Rescue operations concluded about 24 hours later after officials determined no additional victims remained.
The Department of Buildings and the New York Police Department have taken over the site. The cause of the collapse is still under investigation, and city officials said they are reviewing whether criminal conduct contributed. Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said the office is working with the Department of Buildings and law-enforcement partners to assess potential charges.
Victims included six adults and two children; two of the deceased were construction workers. Among the injured were four firefighters, with one person remaining in critical condition in hospital. The mayor expressed condolences, referring to the victims as "our friends and our neighbours" and noting the diverse backgrounds of those affected.
More than 250 firefighters responded to the incident, and the head of the Department of Buildings, Ahmed Tigani, reported that no building-code violations had been recorded for the collapsed structure before the event. The property developer, which holds permits for the adjacent excavation, is linked to numerous other sites across the city that are now being reviewed.
A witness who had delivered a package to an apartment moments before the collapse said he heard a loud "boom" and saw dust fill the air as the building fell. He observed fire trucks arriving within a minute or two and the street being closed shortly thereafter.