Brooklyn building collapse kills two, injures 17 as rescue efforts continue

Detailed summary

A three-storey residential building collapses into an adjacent construction site, leaves four people critically injured and seven children among the casualties.

At least two people have been killed and 17 others injured after a three-storey residential building collapsed into an adjacent construction site in Brooklyn, New York, municipal officials confirmed.

The structural failure occurred at approximately 4.01 pm local time at 1321 Flatbush Avenue, triggering a major emergency services response, New York City Fire Department (FDNY) Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore told reporters.

Multiple occupants inside the residential property and workers at the neighbouring construction site were trapped beneath rubble following the collapse, Bonsignore said.

"We have 19 patients. Sadly, we have two that are deceased, four that are critical, 12 that are stable, and we also have one firefighter with minor injuries. Of those 19, seven are children," Bonsignore stated.

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."

TV images showed dozens of emergency vehicles swarming around the scene, with firefighters reportedly using chainsaws and search dogs to help find survivors.

Emergency personnel continued intensive search-and-rescue operations across the scene into Wednesday evening, whilst officials stated they had yet to determine precisely how many individuals remained unaccounted for within the collapse zone.

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