Eight killed, including two children, after Brooklyn building collapses beside construction site

Eight people, including two children, were killed and 18 injured after a three-storey apartment building at 1321 Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn collapsed into an adjacent construction site on Wednesday, 11 November 2026, New York City officials said.

The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) said rescue efforts ended on Thursday, 12 November 2026, just after 3.30pm. Debris clearance has since begun, while the cause of the collapse remains under investigation.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani told a news conference on Thursday that six adults and two children died. Two construction workers were among the dead, he said.

Eighteen people were injured, including four firefighters, according to Mamdani. One person remained in critical condition and the others were stable.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) identified the victims on Thursday night, according to The Washington Post.

They were Nicole Daniela Salvada Rodriguez, 9; Kevin Santiago Reyes Gonzalez, 10; Juan Daniel Salvada Guzman, 31; Ndiaye Mamadou, 31; Barry Mamadou, 23; Gabriel Siguencia, 22; Edgar Sapon, 26; and Jose Luis Caguana Cosquillo, 26.

Mamdani said the victims included immigrants from Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador and Trinidad and Tobago. He described them as friends and neighbours, parents and children, and young families building their lives in the city.

Emergency response

The alarm was raised just after 4pm on Wednesday, according to The Washington Post. Mamdani said firefighters reached the scene within one minute of the first 911 call and praised their response.

More than 250 emergency responders worked at the scene, the mayor said. He also thanked the New Rochelle Fire Department, which volunteered its services overnight.

Rescuers used pickaxes and power saws to work through the rubble, and fire and police dogs were deployed, The Washington Post reported, citing photographs from the scene and local media reports.

Mamdani said some construction workers on site dug others out of the rubble after barely surviving themselves. He said: “People are alive today because of their heroism yesterday.”

Mamdani described the situation on Wednesday as fast-moving, with precarious wreckage and dangerous voids beneath the surface. Authorities shut city water mains early on Thursday, affecting around 100 buildings, to let crews continue working.

FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said the department was carrying out search-and-rescue alongside general debris removal. She said rain would hinder efforts and firefighters would stay until they were certain nobody remained trapped.

Investigation

Mamdani said the Department of Buildings (DOB) and law enforcement are leading the investigation, with Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez as a partner. It covers both the construction site and the collapsed building.

Gonzalez said his office was working closely with the DOB and law enforcement to determine whether any criminal conduct contributed to the collapse.

Mamdani said five companies are tied to the collapse site and to about 100 other locations across the city. DOB inspectors are conducting safety checks at those sites.

DOB Commissioner Ahmed Tigani urged members of the public to share photographs, videos and other information. City officials have pledged to hold fully accountable any person or entity found responsible.

A stop-work order was issued for the construction site on Wednesday, according to the DOB. Mamdani said the city would share its findings with New Yorkers.

The construction site

Construction was under way on a lot next to the north wall of the collapsed building, The Washington Post reported. Tigani said the site had an approved plan for a three-storey building.

He said plans for a nine-storey building had been filed but not yet approved. Zoning documents outline a mixed-use development including a food store, apartments and businesses.

ABC News reported that blueprints show a mixed-use building with retail space, medical services and residential apartments.

Property records show Robert Fischman owned the lot. In February, he sent a required notice to a local advisory board saying construction would begin in 30 days.

In one letter, Fischman said precautions would be taken to protect the adjacent property at 1321 Flatbush Avenue.

The Washington Post reported that records filed in the months before the collapse warned of possible adverse effects on nearby buildings from excavation and vibrations.

According to records, excavation for the building’s cellar began on 10 September. James Williams, 60, who works nearby, told the newspaper the work was ongoing on the day of the collapse.

Williams said he heard loud bangs from the site that day, roughly every five minutes. He questioned whether enough had been done to secure the residents of the adjacent building.

State Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, whose office is across the street, said city leaders were examining the excavation plans. She said they were also checking whether the crew was digging deeper than its permits allowed.

Earlier orders and violations at the site

The Washington Post reported that the construction site was fined US$10,000 for failing to abide by a DOB stop-work order in April. The fine was paid in October.

CBS News reported that the DOB ordered a contractor in March to halt all demolition work. The reason was a lack of overhead protection, such as sheds or netting, for neighbouring properties.

Inspectors said the contractor resumed demolition despite the order, prompting a violation in April. A DOB spokesperson told CBS News the violations were corrected and the order was lifted in May.

The demolition contractor said it carried out only demolition months ago, not the excavation under way on Wednesday.

The contractor listed on the April summons told WABC, ABC News’ sister station, that the company did the demolition but left the site by late April or early May. He said he was unaware of any existing condition of the shores.

ABC News reported that DOB records show one summons was issued in April for the site along Bedford Avenue. It concerned an alleged stop-work order violation that was later resolved.

WABC found no building violations for the site of the building that collapsed, according to ABC News.

The collapsed building

The collapsed building was constructed in 1930, The Washington Post reported. Bichotte Hermelyn said it was ageing, like many in the area.

City property records list Isolag Realty Corp as the owner, with Olufemi Falade as its registered agent.

The Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) said the property was cited for 11 violations of the housing and maintenance code this year. In April, it was cited for inadequate water supply to its sprinkler system.

The property was also told that month to repair a roof leak and exposed electrical wiring. According to The Washington Post, it has 25 open violations classified as hazardous or immediately hazardous.

CBS News reported that city housing records list 98 open violations at the property, ranging from bedbugs to leaks. The figures differ between the two outlets’ reports.

City records show Falade owns multiple Brooklyn properties with unresolved building code violations dating back several years, according to The Washington Post. The newspaper said he did not respond to multiple phone calls.

The New York Post reported at the time that he was jailed for 12 days in 2006 over hazardous conditions and unpaid fines. CBS News New York reported that a judge found him in civil contempt after the city took him to court.

Public Advocate Jumaane Williams said his office was examining disturbing reports about the property and its owner, who he said may have been negligent. He said the landlord may have appeared on the city’s worst landlord watchlist in recent years.

Closures and diversions

Vacate orders are in place for 1323, 1325 and 1327 Flatbush Avenue. Flatbush Avenue is also closed between Clarendon Road and Bedford Avenue.

The B41, B49, B103, B8 and BM2 buses are being diverted. Mamdani urged residents to avoid the affected area.