Approved three-story plans covered the excavated Brooklyn lot
Emergency crews were called to the building Wednesday afternoon after one of its walls broke off and fell onto the adjacent construction site, The Wall Street Journal reported.
The New York City Department of Buildings said crews were excavating at the adjacent construction site. There are approved plans to build a three-story building on the lot. It is unclear if the excavation work contributed to the collapse.
No victims have been identified yet.
The new reporting sits against the confirmed toll: a three-story apartment building collapsed in Brooklyn on Wednesday, killing eight people and injuring at least 17 others, New York City officials said. The building collapsed into an adjacent construction site, trapping residents and construction workers, according to the New York City Fire Department. The cause is still under investigation.
Rescue workers spent the night searching the site of the collapse to find and save anyone who may still be trapped, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Thursday. “There are no words for a loss of this magnitude,” Mamdani said.
Three firefighters were among the injured, Mamdani said.
The collapsed building was constructed in 1930, according to city records, and included a mix of residential and commercial units.