One dead, four critical after three-storey New York building collapses

First responders tend to a collapsed building in Brooklyn in New York on November 11, 2026 that killed one person and seriously injured four others. — AFP pic

First Published: Thursday, 12 Nov 2026 8:48 AM MYT

NEW YORK, Nov 12 — One person was killed and several others were injured Wednesday after a three-storey building collapsed near a construction site in New York, city authorities said.

Images from the scene showed firefighters sifting through a pile of rubble in front of what appeared to be a residential property with its walls torn down, exposing a bedroom and a clothing wardrobe.

US media reported that some people were pulled from the rubble, including a child carried out on a stretcher.

New York’s fire department said it received reports of people trapped following the building collapse at around 4pm (2100 GMT) in the Flatbush district of Brooklyn.

One person was pronounced dead on arrival, the FDNY said, while four were transported to hospital in critical condition.

A further six suffered minor injuries.

The cause of the collapse was not immediately known.

The city’s Department of Buildings said its inspectors were on the scene “assisting with recovery operations and conducting structural stability inspections of nearby buildings.” — AFP