Eight die in Brooklyn building collapse; watch community leaders and residents hold meeting

Survivors recount the collapse

Residents described the collapse and its aftermath at a Friday news conference. Ciahola Lawrence said her neighboring apartment’s shared wall was torn away, leaving her home open to dust and wreckage.

Lawrence recalled seeing neighbors carried out on stretchers during her evacuation. A resident next door, Zariah Coleman, said construction had caused shaking in the building and that she had worried about her cat.

A worker across the street said he saw bricks fall shortly before the collapse. Another neighbor said residents associated construction vibrations with cracks in their apartment walls.

Families mourn those killed

Mamadou Mouctar Balde had gone out for groceries on Wednesday, leaving his pregnant wife, Fatoumata Bah, and roommates Mamadou N'Diaye and Mamadou Barry at home. He returned to find emergency crews and learned the building had fallen.

Rescuers recovered N'Diaye and Barry from the wreckage, while Bah was found alive. Balde said his wife and unborn child were doing well. The dead included two children, ages 9 and 10, city officials said. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said victims also came from Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador and Trinidad; N'Diaye and Barry were from Guinea.

Investigation widens across city

New York officials are investigating what caused the three-story building to collapse while work was underway at an adjacent construction site. Ahmed Tigani, the city’s buildings commissioner, said his department was carrying out an exhaustive inquiry.

The city ordered inspections at more than 160 sites associated with six entities connected to the nearby construction and demolition site. Mamdani said authorities would pursue any evidence of criminal conduct to the full extent of the law.

A relative of N'Diaye and Barry called on the city and Guinean community to support the family and seek justice. The collapse left 18 people injured, including four firefighters.