At least two people were killed and 17 others were injured - including seven children - when a building collapsed in Brooklyn, as others remain trapped under rubble.
The three-story residential structure crumbled into an open construction site around 4pm on Wednesday on Bedford Avenue in Flatbush.
Multiple people were left stuck under the rubble, including workers who were on site when the building came crashing down, the FDNY said.
At least two people were pronounced dead, while around ten others were taken to the hospital with both critical and non-life-threatening injuries, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said at a press conference.
'This has been an incredibly challenging and fast-moving situation,' Mamdani said, describing the incident as 'devastating.'
At least seventeen were injured, including seven children and a firefighter, officials announced.
More than 250 fire and EMS personnel responded to the scene, but FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore noted: 'Collapse operations are extremely dangerous.
'Every move is choreographed and critically important to patient outcomes and member safety,' she said Wednesday night, adding that 'members have been working methodically and haven't stopped since they arrived this afternoon.'
The structure started to crumble around 4pm on Wednesday on Bedford Avenue in Flatbush
One individual who was still trapped under the debris and communicating with first responders following the collapse. He was removed on a stretcher at around 4.45pm.
Two others were also trapped under the rubble and were pulled out just after 6.30pm, according to NBC 4.
Video from the scene showed firefighters lifting victims from the debris and onto stretchers. Other images showed clothes hanging in rooms that were exposed from the collapse.
Firefighters were also seen digging through the rubble by hand, as rescuers used dogs to sniff for survivors.
'It's devastating. It's absolutely devastating,' one resident, Bria, told NewsNation.
'I mean, this community is very close-knit, it's very tight... I'm at a loss for words.'
A construction worker embraces a child at the scene of a partial building collapse
The New York City Department of Buildings said inspectors are at the scene 'assisting with recovery operations and conducting structural stability inspections of nearby buildings'
'You just hope that people are taking care of their properties, and everything is staying up to code so stuff like this doesn't happen,' Bria said.
'We just want safety in our homes.'
The building that collapsed had been erected in the 1930s.
It was a mixed-use structure with apartments atop a business on the ground floor. Officials advised people to avoid the area and expect street closures and traffic delays.
The New York City Department of Buildings said inspectors are at the scene 'assisting with recovery operations and conducting structural stability inspections of nearby buildings.'
The building that collapsed was perched on the edge of a lot where another one-story building had been torn down for a construction project, AP reported.
A person is wheeled away on a stretcher after the building collapsed
Firefighters respond to the scene of a building collapse in the Flatbush neighborhood
Before the incident, the site was being excavated, and the building that fell filled the construction site with wood and bricks, per the report.
A separate building that shared a wall with the one that fell remained standing, but some of its walls were torn off, exposing the rooms inside, including a bedroom and closets filled with clothing.
Anderson Velez, a resident of the collapsed building, told the New York Post that he was at work when his wife called, saying his two children - aged 7 and 2 - were trapped under the rubble.
'She called me when the building collapsed while she was inside with rubble on top of her. She was screaming for someone to help get my son out and then the call cut off,' he told the outlet.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is pictured addressing the devastating building collapse on Wednesday night
Mamdani earlier said on X that his office would share information 'as soon as we can confirm it.'
'As emergency operations continue, please join me in holding our neighbors and the members of this community in our hearts,' he wrote.
Meanwhile, Governor Kathy Hochul said: 'My heart breaks for the family who lost a loved one in today’s building collapse in Brooklyn. I’m keeping them in my thoughts and praying for everyone affected.'
'My administration has reached out and offered its full support as authorities investigate what happened,' she added.
This is breaking news – Updates to follow.