Building collapses in Brooklyn: one dead
Rescue workers have pulled several people alive from the rubble.
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A three-storey building collapsed in Brooklyn on Wednesday. At least one person was killed and several people were injured, according to US emergency services and media reports.
The building on Flatbush Avenue in the Flatbush neighbourhood gave way at around 4 p.m. local time, according to the New York Fire Department. According to initial reports, the property collapsed into an open excavation next to a site where work was under way on a new building.
The precise number of casualties had still not been fully established overnight. Associated Press, citing the New York City Fire Department, reported one death, four people seriously injured and six with less serious injuries. CBS News New York put the number of injured at at least ten; ABC News later reported twelve injured, including six people said to be in a serious condition.
Rescue workers pulled several people alive from the rubble during the operation. The fire department deployed dozens of emergency workers, dogs and hand tools. As it was not immediately clear how many people were in and around the building, the search continued into the evening.
An adjoining building remained standing, but part of its side wall was damaged. As a result, parts of flats and stairwells were left exposed. The fire department and the city cordoned off the area and urged road users to avoid the vicinity.
According to city records, demolition work on another building had previously been carried out at the site. CBS reported that the city’s building department had recorded a violation in April involving a contractor who allegedly carried out demolition work despite a stop order. The violation is now listed as resolved; the available information does not show that it was directly connected to the collapse.
The New York City Department of Buildings sent inspectors to the site to check the stability of surrounding buildings. No cause has yet been established. The authorities must first complete the rescue operation and then investigate what role the work next to the building played.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The article’s main points are confirmed by AP, CBS News New York and ABC News. Where sources give different casualty figures, that uncertainty is explicitly presented, and no cause is stated as an established fact.
- confirmed A three-storey building in Flatbush, Brooklyn, collapsed at around 4 p.m. on 11 November 2026. — AP, CBS and ABC report the location, height and time. source
- confirmed At least one person died in the collapse and several people were injured. — All three sources report at least one death and multiple injuries. source
- confirmed The sources differ on the exact number of injured people. — CBS reports at least ten injured; ABC reports twelve; AP reports ten injured in addition to the death. source
- confirmed Rescue workers pulled several people alive from the rubble. — AP, CBS and ABC describe rescues during the operation. source
- confirmed The cause of the collapse has not yet been established. — CBS reports that further details are unavailable and that the connection with the work is unclear. source
- confirmed The city’s building department carried out inspections and checked the stability of surrounding buildings. — ABC and CBS report the deployment of inspectors from the New York City Department of Buildings. source
Editor's note
It is certain that a building collapsed in Flatbush, that at least one person died and that several people were injured. Sources differ on the exact number of injured; the cause and any possible connection with the construction work have not yet been established.Sources
- Firefighters dig through rubble after NYC building collapse kills 1 and traps people in wreckage — Associated Press
- Brooklyn building collapse leaves at least 1 dead, 10 others injured, FDNY says — CBS News New York
- At least 1 dead, multiple injured after building collapses in Brooklyn, New York: FDNY — ABC News
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „new york”
- Trouw — „new york”
- NRC — „new york”