Mayor Mamdani gives presser on latest developments in the Brooklyn building collapse

I am arriving here having just visited a number of the New Yorkers who were hospitalized as a result of yesterday's building collapse. This has been a devastating evening and morning for our city. Eight of our fellow New Yorkers, six adults and two children have died as a result of a three-story building collapse here at 1321 Flatbush Avenue. Six of those New Yorkers Two others passed away on the scene. Two others died at nearby hospitals. As of now, we have confirmed that two of those who died were construction workers at 2625 Bedford Avenue. Eighteen other people were injured from the collapse. Fourteen civilians and four firefighters. The vast majority of those still being treated in hospitals are in stable condition. One person is in critical condition. Before I provide further information, I want to take a moment to remember those we have so senselessly lost. These were our friends and our neighbors, parents and children, young families building their lives in our city and immigrants from Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador, Trinidad and beyond. Let us continue to hold close those who have been plunged into unimaginable grief and pray for a full and rapid recovery for every New Yorker injured. I want to thank all those who did not hesitate to help. Those who ran towards danger when this building collapsed and in the hours afterwards. Construction workers who had only barely survived themselves turned back and dug victims out of the rubble. People are alive today because of their heroism yesterday. Firefighters arrived on the scene in less than one minute after the 911 call first came in. 250 firefighters and EMS personnel worked tirelessly throughout the evening, the morning, and are continuing now, searching for survivors, rescuing people from the rubble, and tending to the injured. Just because we expect this courage from the FDNY does not make it any less extraordinary. And I want to thank those who selflessly responded from afar, including the New Rochelle Fire Department, who volunteered their services overnight and only just returned home this morning. And as always occurs in a moment of tragedy, the city has come together to stand alongside those who are enduring this hardship. New Yorkers dropped off supplies and the Red Cross immediately opened a reception center for impacted and displaced residents at the Flatbush YMCA at 1401 Flatbush Avenue. The city and the Red Cross are continuing to provide expanded services from the YMCA, including temporary housing for displaced residents, assistance with social services, And mental health support. This response has included agencies across the whole of government. Agencies on site include the FDNY, NYPD, NYSEM, DEP, DSNY, OCME, DOB, HPD, New York State Police, as well as our partners from the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office. Conditions will grow more challenging today with the rain, but operations will continue. As I said yesterday evening, a tragedy of this magnitude demands a comprehensive and thorough investigation that includes both the construction site and the building which collapsed. That has already begun with the Department of Buildings and Law Enforcement leading it. We will find out what happened and we will share that information with New Yorkers. There are five main entities involved with this construction site who are associated with approximately 100 other sites across the city. Our Department of Buildings is commencing sweeps of those sites today. As we search for survivors and clear the scene there will be a continued impact on nearby residents. Vacate orders are in place on 1323, 1325, and 1327 Flatbush Avenues. Residents of other buildings further south on Flatbush Avenue who were temporarily displaced have been allowed to reoccupy their homes. The MTA has diverted the following bus routes B41, B49, B103, B8, and BM2. Flatbush Avenue remains closed between Clarendon Road and Bedford Avenue. Please avoid the area so that emergency crews can continue their work. If you are unable to reach someone you believe may have been affected by the collapse, please call 311. If you are outside New York City, please call 212-639-9675. Again, that's 212-639-9675. This has been a very dark night. Evening and morning for our city. We are mourning too many people who we loved. And as we grieve and as we rebuild, we will do so together as one city.