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Seven children were among the two killed and 17 injured after a Brooklyn building collapsed into a construction site, sparking a frantic search by firefighters who combed through large and unstable piles of rubble to locate survivors, officials said.

The collapse of the three-story building on Flatbush Avenue near Bedford Avenue occurred around 4 p.m. Wednesday, the FDNY said. It was not known what caused or led up to the collapse in the Flatbush neighborhood.

The FDNY responded within a minute and said two people were removed from the rubble soon after the collapse. Arial footage showed dozens of firefighters scouring for other survivors in the debris well into the evening.

About 250 firefighters and EMS personnel responded to the scene, along with K-9 units from the FDNY and the NYPD to assist with the search.

A drone hovered over the site as firefighters dug by hand, tossing chunks of rubble aside. As darkness fell, firefighters used flashlights to illuminate the area where they worked.

Two people died and at least 17 people were hurt, four of whom were in critical condition, the FDNY said at a later press conference. The others suffered less serious injuries. Seven children were among the victims, according to the FDNY, along with a firefighter who had minor injuries.

The fire department noted that the number of victims could increase, as it was not known how many people were in the building at the time of the collapse and if everyone had been accounted for. FDNY Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said the number could change “by the minute” as the operation, which is expected to take days, continues.

“This is such a very fragile situation here…We’ll continue to look until we find everybody. And we work in collaboration with NYPD to see if there’s any missing reports. We all work together to try to determine how many people are still to be found,” Bonsignore said, noting that victims included construction workers and those who were inside the building at the time.

The FDNY did not share the ages or identities of the two people killed, nor or if any children died.

A man told NBC New York his brother, Jose Luis Caguana, was killed in the collapse. The 26-year-old immigrant from Ecuador had been in the U.S. for about six years, his brother said, working construction to support his family. Caguana’s wife, who is pregnant and due very soon, was too distraught to speak with reporters on camera. The couple also have another young child.

“This has been an incredibly challenging and fast-moving situation, with precarious wreckage to navigate and dangerous voids beneath the surface,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said at the press conference. “The numbers may change as the work continues.”

Video from Chopper 4 showed firefighters pull an injured person from the rubble around 4:45 p.m. He was taken away on a stretcher. Hours later, two others were seen taken away on stretchers just after 6:30 p.m.

The building that collapsed was a three-story building with a business on the ground floor and multiple apartments inside. It was located next to an excavation site where a one-story building had previously stood before being fully demolished in 2025.

The collapsed building filled the construction pit with bricks and wood.

The FDNY said there was work going on at the site at the time of the collapse. The crew was doing excavation work, the Department of Buildings said, with approved plans to build three-story building at the site. There were also plans for a nine-story building to be built, but the DOB said those plans had not yet been approved.

Phone and email messages seeking comment were left with the architect, property owner and general contractor listed in city records as being associated with the construction project.

Another building that shared a wall with the collapsed structure remained standing, but its wall was shorn off, exposing the rooms inside, including a bedroom and closets filled with clothing.

The city’s Office of Emergency Management (NYCEM) advised people avoid the area, as traffic delays and road closures could be expected. Flatbush Avenue remained closed from Clarendon Road to Bedford Avenue through the night.

Multiple agencies responded to the scene. An investigation into the collapse is ongoing. The DOB said inspectors were at the scene to assist with recovery operations and to conduct structural stability inspections of surrounding buildings.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said on social media “My heart breaks for the family who lost a loved one in today’s building collapse in Brooklyn. I’m keeping them in my thoughts and praying for everyone affected. My administration has reached out and offered its full support as authorities investigate what happened.”

The American Red Cross said they had a team at the scene working with residents impacted by the collapse. The Red Cross and NYCEM opened a reception center for any impacted or displaced residents, Mamdani said. As of 10 p.m., the Red Cross said it four households, comprised of eight adults and two children, to register for emergency assistance.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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