A tragic building collapse in Brooklyn’s Flatbush neighborhood claimed eight lives and injured 18 others, prompting emergency citywide inspections of roughly 100 properties.
The disaster unfolded on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 11, when a three-story residential building collapsed toward an adjacent construction site where excavation work was underway. First responders pulled survivors from the rubble and transported the injured, including four firefighters, to local hospitals before rescue operations concluded on Thursday afternoon, November 12.
Brooklyn Disaster Overview
- A three-story building on Flatbush Avenue collapsed toward a neighboring excavation site on Wednesday afternoon, November 11, killing eight people and injuring 18 others.
- New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani ordered inspections of approximately 100 properties linked to five corporate entities involved in the construction work.
- Surviving family members shared video footage showing the sudden interior destruction moments before the walls gave way.
Footage Captures Interior Destruction
Newly released video footage from inside an apartment captured the terrifying moments before the collapse, as CBS News New York reported. In the recording, a nine-year-old boy realizes something is wrong and runs toward his mother while his two-year-old brother sits on the floor nearby. Seconds later, the living room walls buckle and the footage cuts out abruptly.
Anderson Velez shared the footage with media outlets after confirming he was away from home during the incident. His wife and older son survived the collapse, with his wife and nine-year-old son being hospitalized, while the two-year-old boy emerged uninjured, Newsbreak.gr reported.
A separate video from a neighboring building captured a thick cloud of dust engulfing the area immediately following the structural failure, according to CNNi coverage noted by SigmaLive.
Doorbell camera footage captured the moment a three-story building collapsed in Brooklyn’s Flatbush neighborhood on Wednesday, killing eight people, including two children, and injuring 18 others. pic.twitter.com/bDsocIE0cX
Identified Victims of the Flatbush Collapse
City authorities and local reports identified the eight individuals who lost their lives in the disaster, which included two children and workers from the neighboring construction site. The young victims were nine-year-old Nicole Daniela Salvada Rodríguez and ten-year-old Kevin Santiago Reyes González, Sigmalive reported based on official confirmations.
Other victims included 26-year-old José Luis Caguana from Ecuador, who had immigrated six years prior and was expecting a second child with his pregnant wife, as his brother Carlos shared with Univision. The tragedy also claimed 26-year-old Edgar Santiago Sapón, 22-year-old Gabriel Siguencia, 23-year-old Mamadou Barry from Guinea, 31-year-old Juan Daniel Salvada Guzmán, and 31-year-old Ndiaye Mamadou.
“Ήταν φίλοι μας και γείτονές μας. Γονείς και παιδιά, νέες οικογένειες που έχτιζαν τη ζωή τους στην πόλη μας, καθώς και μετανάστες από το Μεξικό, την Κολομβία, τον Ισημερινό, το Τρινιντάντ και άλλες χώρες.”
| Casualty Metric | Reported Figure |
|---|---|
| Total Fatalities | 8 |
| Injured Individuals | 18 |
| Properties Ordered for Inspection | ~100 |
Investigation Into Excavation Safety
Investigators are focusing heavily on whether excavation work at the adjacent building site compromised the structural stability of the collapsed three-story building. Residents previously reported feeling vibrations and noticing cracks in their walls while construction crews operated next door, Sigmalive noted regarding prior safety infractions at the site.
In response to the collapse, Mayor Mamdani ordered comprehensive safety audits across approximately 100 properties in New York City associated with five corporate entities connected to the Flatbush project. City agencies and engineering teams continue examining the debris and construction records to determine the exact sequence of structural failures.
TERRIFYING FOOTAGE: The horrifying moment a building collapsed in Brooklyn on Wednesday, claiming eight lives and leaving several others in critical condition. pic.twitter.com/1ZXC9bLXRU
Earlier coverage: Brooklyn Building Collapse Kills Two and Leaves Many Trapped
