Full Transcript for BREAKING UPDATE: Brooklyn Building Collapse Now Claims At Least 8 Lives

thinking, oh, no, these were families who were at home. Probably kids came home from after school. Folks are getting ready for dinner, doing homework, all the things that families do at 4 p.m. 00:03:02 Speaker 1: You know, the crappy thing also about this, Robes, school was out yesterday. 00:03:08 Speaker 3: You're right. It was Veterans Day. 00:03:10 Speaker 4: So actually people who might have been at work, kids who might have been at school or at after school activities were all at home because it was a federal holiday. You're right. 00:03:21 Speaker 3: I hadn't even put that together yet. 00:03:24 Speaker 2: So at that time of day, and Rob, you described it, it makes perfect sense. And if anybody, you haven't seen the pictures of it, the video of it, imagine a doll house. A Barbie dollhouse where you can, it's built so you can see right into it from one side, right? It's sheared off. And that's what you see. I remember seeing closets and beds and. 00:03:49 Speaker 1: Things like that. 00:03:50 Speaker 2: But Robes, it's hard to imagine these two things are not related. The construction site next door and this building happens to fall. But Robes, when they said, I was relieved. They said a construction site. I'm like, oh, thank goodness. The building wasn't full of people. 00:04:05 Speaker 1: At least that. 00:04:06 Speaker 2: But Robes, what happened to where this building, they say, to give an explanation, it has a store at the bottom, commercial use at the bottom, and apartments on top. 00:04:16 Speaker 3: Correct. So, yeah, a three-story building. 00:04:19 Speaker 4: And, yes, obviously there were construction workers working next door, and they are among the dead. So that's why it's so confusing. You had two separate sites and now just a huge pile of rubble, and it really– goes throughout a footprint of two buildings. 00:04:38 Speaker 3: So it's just a massive, massive site. 00:04:40 Speaker 4: And I have to say that the police and the fire Department's response was almost immediate. They say after the collapse happened within a minute, firefighters were on the scene. And look, my daughter lives in Brooklyn. 00:04:53 Speaker 3: I was really nervous. 00:04:54 Speaker 4: I had just actually said goodbye to her and I knew she had just gotten home. And of course, initially we didn't know where in Brooklyn. So I'm texting her. She said, we're fine. But her roommate was home. And said he heard a huge bang. Like you could hear this from miles away. They're in a slightly different area of Brooklyn. This is in the Flatbush section of Brooklyn. But that's how loud this was. And people who were there nearby described this feeling like another 9-11. That's how dramatic and traumatic it was to be in or around the area. 00:05:26 Speaker 2: It's awful for those families. They're dealing with, oh, people are still missing. There are families and friends who are waiting for word and hoping, right, for some kind of a miracle. And there have been because people have been pulled from this role. But, Robes, this is an all-too-familiar drill almost that we run here in New York. Robes, what you did yesterday, I'm sure you have done numerous times here in New York and every other family did here. You hear something like this, you immediately start tracking down your loved ones. Yes. 00:05:58 Speaker 1: Where are you? What are you? Are you OK? 00:06:01 Speaker 2: Robes, there have been times manhole covers have blown off in New York and we all are looking for each other. It's just something here in New York we've become accustomed to, even if you came here after 9-11. But certainly those folks, Robes, just this city, it's a reminder sometimes of how we are constantly a target and on edge and anything can happen. 00:06:22 Speaker 1: And we were in a position yesterday, once again, looking for loved ones. Yes. 00:06:25 Speaker 3: Are you home? Are you safe? Is what I asked. 00:06:28 Speaker 4: And look, it's also living in apartment buildings that are next to other apartment buildings. 00:06:33 Speaker 3: We're all very aware that one. 00:06:36 Speaker 4: action by one person can do a whole lot of damage, whether it's someone falling asleep with a cigarette and, you know, causing a fire or yes, a. 00:06:45 Speaker 3: Construction project next to you. That's a little disconcerting. 00:06:48 Speaker 4: We have construction all around us. We can feel vibrations. Uh, we can hear them and feel them on our window panes. So yes, we all live on top of one another. And to think that, yes, if this construction project nearby, had any impact on this residential building. 00:07:06 Speaker 3: It's just horrific to think about. 00:07:08 Speaker 1: It would have to. 00:07:10 Speaker 4: They demolished the building, I guess, several months ago, but who knows what that weakened? Who knows what that may have done? And they actually had a stop order for a while because, look, obviously city inspectors are on top of and overseeing these massive construction projects that go on each and every day throughout the city. But this is like worst case scenario. And by the way, with the death toll at this hour at eight, we now have 19 people injured. And from our understanding, four people are in critical condition right now in the hospital. So there are people fighting for their lives. And yes, we heard about a pregnant woman being taken and seven children being rescued, but we don't know the condition of a lot of folks. And that's the concern because A lot of families don't know where their loved ones are. We've seen, we've been watching local news. There are folks who have parked outside the hospital where they've taken some of these injured. There are people who have gathered at the scene waiting for word. There are people who have been texting their loved ones and haven't gotten responses back. I cannot imagine the fear that so many of these families are feeling right now. 00:08:19 Speaker 2: And this effort now, which includes

250 firefighters strong, has been going on since 4 o'clock. Around the clock, it has been nonstop. And it will not stop. I don't know at what point, Robes, they think they've got it all out. 00:08:33 Speaker 1: Go ahead. 00:08:33 Speaker 4: No, I'm just saying, there's an update from the New York Times saying a spokesperson from the New York Fire Department said that officials are still hoping to find survivors in the rubble. 00:08:41 Speaker 3: I mean, right now. 00:08:43 Speaker 4: And this, as you point out, has been going on for hours and hours throughout the night. And they are still hoping to find survivors. Unfortunately, the recent discovery was a grim one. 00:08:55 Speaker 2: But, Rose, that statement suggests they have information that there could be People still in there. 00:09:01 Speaker 4: Yes. 00:09:01 Speaker 1: There are still people in there. 00:09:03 Speaker 3: Because there are family members. 00:09:04 Speaker 4: I mean, we're seeing the reporting from the scene just a short distance from our apartment here saying there are dozens of onlookers, family members, gathered from the building residence waiting for word on their loved one, meaning they don't know where they are. They haven't been reported as being admitted to a hospital. And so, yes, there is information that there are people still under the rubble. 00:09:29 Speaker 3: Are they alive? Are they trapped? Can they be rescued? That's the question. 00:09:33 Speaker 2: And the rescues, essentially, Robe, you've got 250 firefighters that they're using whatever they can to dig through. 00:09:40 Speaker 1: And that includes their hands. They're using saws. They're using axes. 00:09:43 Speaker 2: They've got dogs out there. They're doing everything they can. Robe, this looks like an earthquake zone. 00:09:49 Speaker 3: It does. 00:09:49 Speaker 1: That's what this looks like. How? 00:09:52 Speaker 2: I did not expect, and I am nervous now, because Robes, but 30 minutes ago, we still had the official count at two. We still had the official count at two and you and I were debating about where we're going to put this in the rundown today and this happens and this is, we don't know how big this tragedy could actually get. Robes, of course, we know an investigation is going on. But something, this isn't supposed to happen. So there is a cause that's going to have to be figured out. And you were mentioning kind of, there's a little bit of a history with. permits and this site and whatnot. 00:10:27 Speaker 3: Yes, exactly. 00:10:28 Speaker 4: They actually had a stop order because there was some issue. And so, look, we know that that is going to be, that investigation is going to be taking place after this rescue and recovery mission continues. 00:10:41 Speaker 3: I actually just got another update. This is just incredible. 00:10:45 Speaker 4: The New York Times, among many, many news outlets that are there on the scene saying they literally just spoke with a resident of the Bronx who

who's been there since 10 p.m. last night, awaiting news of two cousins who were in the building at the time of the collapse. We don't know if they're still alive. We don't know if they've passed. We don't know anything. They went to the hospitals. 00:11:06 Speaker 3: They weren't there. We have no news. 00:11:08 Speaker 4: This is the story of so many people who have gathered there, and they are fearing the worst right now, but hoping, hoping that these rescuers are going to find. 00:11:17 Speaker 3: Their loved ones. 00:11:17 Speaker 1: Some are fearing the worst, and there's reason now to fear Mother Nature. 00:11:34 Speaker 3: Welcome back, everyone, to. 00:11:36 Speaker 4: Amy and TJ, we are following a developing and breaking story that is unfortunately becoming grimmer by the moment. The death toll in that Brooklyn building collapse has now dramatically risen in just the past few moments since this recording. We are now up to eight. We know that 19 others are injured. and firefighters and emergency crews are on the scene. They have been digging through the rubble of this collapse for hours now since this happened at 4 p.m., and they are racing against time because Mother Nature is about to throw a massive monkey wrench in this search and recovery effort. 00:12:13 Speaker 2: We've been watching closely. We've planned our whole day, next two days, around this Nor'easter. We have a big storm. 00:12:20 Speaker 1: Coming here. 00:12:21 Speaker 2: Rain is supposed to get going a little after lunchtime and certainly later in the afternoon today. We're talking a significant storm that's coming. 00:12:30 Speaker 4: Right now, temperatures and the weather is actually perfect for those search and recovery efforts. 00:12:35 Speaker 3: It's in the mid-50s. It's comfortable. 00:12:39 Speaker 4: We actually just took a walk outside and that is all about to change because around noon, we're going to get periods of heavy rain, high winds, thunderstorms, and a. 00:12:50 Speaker 3: Massive drop in temperatures. 00:12:52 Speaker 4: So this is your classic autumn nor'easter that is hitting the New York City area in a matter of hours. And so, yes, for those first responders who are obviously racing against time to see if they can pull anyone out alive are also, yes, racing against Mother Nature. 00:13:12 Speaker 1: That is going to hamper those efforts. I mean, it can't help but. 00:13:15 Speaker 4: 100% it's going to. And look, one of the injured this morning was a firefighter. This is dangerous work they're doing. It's unstable. They don't know what's underneath the rubble. They don't know what they're pulling out, pulling up. And think about just the frantic feeling you would feel to know that potential victims' families are literally standing a few feet from you behind a barricade, sobbing. I mean, people are crying and wailing and praying. And you feel that pressure, obviously, to try and find someone And, look, you're dealing with some very dangerous conditions, and we just want to applaud all of the men and the women who are out there who have been working tirelessly throughout the night, risking their own safety to try and save someone who might still be in that rubble. 00:14:00 Speaker 2: Folks, we wanted to hop on and give you this update. We anticipate more updates. Hopefully they're more positive than the last several we have gotten here this morning. But Flatbush in Brooklyn, a central neighborhood neighborhood in, I guess, Robes, one of the, uh, one of the more fun boroughs here and famous boroughs here in New York, um, in Brooklyn, they are going through it right now. And we just don't know how much worse these numbers could get, but it's bad enough already. 00:14:33 Speaker 1: Robes with one dead with one hurt. 00:14:36 Speaker 2: This is awful. Buildings aren't supposed to collapse. Um, So we'll give you an update if we get more, but for now, eight dead, at least 19 injured in a building collapse in Brooklyn. 00:14:46 Speaker 1: I'm TJ. This is my dear Amy Robach. We will be talking to you all soon.