Brooklyn building collapse: 2 dead and 17 hurt as FDNY searches rubble in Flatbush

A Brooklyn building collapse on Wednesday afternoon killed at least two people and injured at least 17 others, including seven children, officials said. The three-story building at 1321 Flatbush Avenue, near Bedford Avenue in Flatbush, came down just after 4 pm Eastern time, about 2.30 am IST on Thursday. Firefighters were still searching the debris on Wednesday night.

What happened on Flatbush Avenue

The New York City Police Department said the building at 1321 Flatbush Avenue completely collapsed, while the side of the adjacent building at 1323 Flatbush Avenue was torn off, CBS New York reported. Police said residents were inside at the time. The vacant site beside the two buildings was under construction, and several people from both the collapsed building and the construction site were trapped, officials told the broadcaster.

The fire department responded within a minute and said two people were pulled from the rubble soon after the collapse, NBC New York reported. Helicopter video showed firefighters lifting an injured person out at about 4.45 pm. Crews later sifted through the debris by hand and broke through a collapsed wall to search beneath it.

Key numbers

• Dead: at least two, according to the FDNY, which had not shared their ages, per NBC New York.
• Injured: at least 17, including seven children and one firefighter with minor injuries, per CBS New York.
• Condition: four people in critical condition and 13 in stable condition, FDNY officials said.
• Buildings hit: two, with 1321 Flatbush Avenue fully collapsed and the side of 1323 Flatbush Avenue torn away.
• Time: just after 4 pm Eastern on Wednesday, 11 November 2026.

FDNY rescue and what officials said

FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said investigators did not know how many people might still be in the collapse zone. “We know that we’re not finished here, and we will likely not be finished for quite some time,” Bonsignore said, per CBS New York.

FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito said the work would run for days. “We will be here for several days until this entire site is searched for all potential victims,” Esposito said.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani spoke at a press conference on Wednesday evening. “This type of rescue is exactly what the FDNY trains for,” he said. On X, the mayor asked people to avoid the area so crews could keep working, and wrote that New Yorkers should join him in “holding our neighbours and the members of this community in our hearts,” NBC New York reported.

Department of Buildings records on the next-door site

The Department of Buildings said its commissioner and investigators went to the site to help with recovery and to check the stability of nearby buildings. According to city records cited by CBS New York, the department issued a demolition violation to a contractor in April because inspectors said the building at that site had been demolished earlier in the year despite a city order to stop all demolition work. The records also showed recent construction there since that demolition.

Officials have not said whether that history is linked to the collapse. Glenn Corbett, an associate professor of fire science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, told CBS New York it appears excavation was going on next to the collapsed building. The cause is under investigation.

What happens next after the Brooklyn building collapse

The toll could still rise. The fire department said it did not know how many people were in the building at the time, or whether everyone had been accounted for. Esposito said crews expect to search the site for several days.

The city has not released the names or ages of the two people killed, and has not said whether any of the seven injured children are among the critically hurt. Building inspectors will keep checking the structures around the site while the search continues.