# They Had Come From Afar to Build New Lives. Then, All Was Gone.

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/they-had-come-from-afar-to-build-new-lives-then-all-was-gone/
- Published: 2026-11-14T08:00:17+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-14T11:26:58+00:00
- Original publisher: New York Times (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/11/14/nyregion/building-collapse-brooklyn-immigrants.html
- Topics: World

## Key points

- Eight people died and 18 were injured in the Brooklyn collapse.
- All eight who died were born outside the United States.
- Prosecutors are investigating as building safety concerns come into focus.

## Summary

An apartment building in Brooklyn collapsed into an adjoining construction site, killing eight people and injuring 18. The dead included three construction workers and two Colombian children; all eight were born outside the United States. The disaster has drawn attention to the risks faced by immigrant workers and residents in a neighbourhood shaped by migration.

The victims and their families had come from Latin America and West Africa to work, raise children and find housing in New York. City records showed unresolved violations at the four-apartment building, including exposed wiring, missing smoke detectors and an inadequate water supply for its sprinkler system. Brooklyn prosecutors opened a criminal investigation into the collapse.

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