The city ordered inspections at more than 160 related work sites while investigators examine excavation, previous violations and the building that fell.
NEW YORK — New York City has expanded its response to the Brooklyn building collapse that killed eight people, ordering inspections at more than 160 construction sites connected to entities associated with the neighboring project as investigators examine whether construction practices, building conditions or other factors contributed to the disaster.
The Nov. 11 collapse at 1321 Flatbush Ave. killed six adults and two children and injured 18 other people, including four firefighters. The three-story building fell beside an excavation site at 2625 Bedford Ave., and part of another neighboring building was torn away. Authorities have identified all eight people who died, but they have not determined what caused the structure to collapse.
The investigation is focusing on both the fallen building and the adjacent construction site. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city ordered inspections at more than 160 sites associated with six entities linked to construction and demolition work at the neighboring property. The city is also bringing in an outside engineering consulting firm to conduct an independent review of the collapse.
The expanded inspections do not establish that violations at the other properties caused the Flatbush disaster. They are part of a broader effort to examine the work of companies connected to the project while investigators reconstruct what happened before the building fell. Officials have said they intend to follow the evidence and determine whether any laws or safety requirements were violated.
City records show the neighboring project had previously attracted enforcement action. In March, the Department of Buildings issued a stop-work order after inspectors determined demolition was being performed without adequate overhead protection. Inspectors found in April that demolition had resumed in violation of the order. The department has said the problems were corrected and work was later allowed to continue.
At the time of the collapse, the neighboring site had moved into excavation and foundation work. Contractors performing excavation in New York are required to give the Department of Buildings advance notice and follow approved plans and safety requirements. Those precautions can include systems to support soil and neighboring structures, as well as monitoring for cracks or other signs of movement.
The construction site had approval for work connected to a three-story building. Developers had also sought an amendment for a larger nine-story mixed-use project containing 64 residential units, but that proposal had not been approved when the neighboring building collapsed, according to the Department of Buildings.
The building that fell also had a long record of housing-code citations. City records list more than 90 unresolved housing violations dating back decades, including more recent citations involving such conditions as exposed wiring, a roof leak and a sprinkler-system problem. Building records also included separate violations involving matters such as an unpermitted advertising sign and a required gas-pipe inspection report.
Officials have not linked those violations to the collapse. Investigators must determine which conditions, if any, affected the structural failure and whether activity at the neighboring excavation contributed. Experts have said adjacent excavation can pose risks to older buildings if soil shifts, supports are inadequate, groundwater affects the site or construction vibrations place added stress on a structure. Those are possible areas of investigation, not findings about what happened in Flatbush.
The disaster has also renewed scrutiny of staffing at the Department of Buildings. City data cited after the collapse showed the department had about 168 vacant positions out of 1,855 authorized jobs, a vacancy rate of roughly 9%. City Council leaders have called for inspector vacancies to be filled as questions mount about how construction projects and neighboring structures are monitored.
The precise inspection history of the Flatbush excavation remains part of the inquiry. Construction companies and engineers retain responsibility for following approved plans and maintaining required safety measures even when city inspectors monitor a site. Investigators are expected to examine the project’s designs, construction methods, protections for adjoining properties and whether the condition of the building was adequately monitored as excavation proceeded.
Emergency crews ended rescue operations Thursday after searching the rubble for nearly 24 hours. Police identified the eight people killed as Nicole Daniela Salvada Rodriguez, 9; Kevin Santiago Reyes Gonzalez, 10; Gabriel Siguencia, 22; Barry Mamadou, 23; Jose Luis Caguana Cosquillo, 26; Edgar Sapon, 26; Juan Daniel Salvada Guzman, 31; and Ndiaye Mamadou, 31.
The Department of Buildings and law enforcement agencies continue to investigate, and the city has not announced a final cause or assigned responsibility for the collapse. The additional inspections and independent engineering review are proceeding as officials examine records, construction activity and the physical evidence left at the Flatbush site.
Author note: Last updated November 14, 2026.