After a massive search and rescue operation concluded, questions remain and calls for accountability are growing in the wake of the collapse of a three-story apartment building in Brooklyn into a nearby construction site.
At least two children and six adults, including two construction workers, died after the 96-year-old building collapsed at about 4 p.m. ET on Nov. 11, according to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. At least 18 people − 14 civilians and four firefighters − were injured as a result of the collapse of 1321 Flatbush Avenue in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, Mamdani said in a midday news conference on Nov. 12.
Within a minute, the collapse sent hundreds of firefighters and EMS personnel scrambling to find survivors in the wreckage.
Those efforts concluded at 3:37 p.m. ET on Nov. 12 when the New York City Fire Department determined that there were "no more victims" at the site, paving the way for the agencies investigating the cause of the collapse to take over.
"The site has been turned over to the Department of Buildings and the NYPD," fire officials said on social media.
A full vacate order was issued for the fallen building and three neighboring properties, Mamdani said. The vacate order for the building on New York City’s Department of Buildings website previously said the collapse was due to "unsafe construction operations at the adjacent property, 2625 Bedford Avenue," but by Thursday afternoon, the site no longer contained that language.
New York Attorney General Leticia James will appear at a news conference Friday morning alongside families impacted by the collapse to call for stronger oversight and increased protection for construction workers.
Here's what we know about the deadly collapse:
Who are the victims of the Brooklyn building collapse?
The NYPD previously identified the dead to USA TODAY as:
- Nicole Daniela Salvada Rodriguez, 9
- Kevin Santiago Reyes Gonzalez, 10
- Gabriel Siguencia, 22
- Barry Mamadou, 23
- Jose Luis Caguana Cosquillo, 26
- Edgar Sapón, 26
- Juan Daniel Salvada Guzman, 31
- Ndiaye Mamadou, 31
What caused the Brooklyn building collapse?
After language on the New York City Department of Buildings' website blaming the collapse on “unsafe construction operations at the adjacent property" was removed, the cause of the tragedy remains unclear. Mamdani previously said that the Department of Buildings and law enforcement agencies would investigate.
"A tragedy of this magnitude demands a comprehensive and thorough investigation that includes both the construction site and the building which collapsed," Mamdani said during a press conference. "That has already begun with the Department of Buildings and law enforcement leading it. We will find out what happened, and we will share that information with New Yorkers."
He added that the Department of Buildings had identified five entities associated with the construction site.
"Those five entities are associated with 100 other sites across the city. The Department of Buildings is commencing sweeps of those sites to ensure that if there is anything New Yorkers need to be worried about, that we are on the scene, and we are doing something about it."
USA TODAY has reached out to N Tech Design of America Corp., a construction company linked to the site in city records, for comment.
Collapsed building had history of 'immediately hazardous' violations
The fallen structure was a four-unit apartment building dating to 1930, Reuters reported. A report filed in March with the city’s Department of Buildings described the building’s north facade as being “in poor condition with noticeable cracks identified."
Prior to that report, the building hada history of hazardous violations stretching back to 1972, city records indicate. Of the 98 violations, 21 are Class C or “immediately hazardous” violations for issues including peeling lead paint, a leaking roof and unsafe electrical wiring.
The building is owned by Isolag Realty group, according to a stop work order on the Department of Buildings' website. Olufemi Falade is listed in a state database as the registered agent for that business and as the head officer, managing agent and shareholder for Femi Realty Corp., the previous owner of the property, on the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development website.
The New York Daily News reported in 2006 that Falade was handed a 12-day jail sentence and $50,000 in fines for failing to fix more than 600 violations at some of his buildings. USA TODAY has reached out to city officials and a number listed for Falade for comment.
What was being built next to collapsed building?
Developers had "a plan approved for a three-story building" and were doing excavation work at the site, Ahmed Tigani, the commissioner of the city's department of buildings, said during a Nov. 11 press conference. The developers were seeking to build a nine-story, mixed-use building with a grocery store on the first floor and residential housing on the floors above, according to a proposal on the city's zoning website. Tigani said those plans have not been approved.
N Tech Design of America, a construction company, demolished a one-story building on the site there despite a stop-work order issued in March, according to a summons issued by the city in April.
In June, certified letters were sent to adjacent properties notifying them that excavation would begin within 30 days, including to the owner of the Flatbush property. It stated that all precautions would be taken to protect the property.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What we know about the cause of NYC building collapse
