A gas explosion occurred on the top floor of a New York City high-rise apartment building early Saturday, causing a fire that spread, killing one person and injuring 14 others as overnight temperatures plummeted into single digits, authorities said.
Firefighters responded to the 17-story building in the Bronx around 12:30 a.m., with flames engulfing part of the top floor and people leaning out of windows to call for help, officials said.
Department Chief John Esposito said firefighters were investigating reports of a gas odor on the 15th and 16th floors when the explosion occurred. He said about a dozen apartments suffered severe structural damage and fires broke out in 10 apartments on the 16th and 17th floors.
Authorities did not immediately release information about the deceased. One other person was seriously injured, five were seriously injured and eight were slightly injured, officials said.
Officials said the building is undergoing renovations and work on the natural gas system has been completed and inspected. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. The building was previously operated by the New York City Housing Authority but has been under private management since 2024, city officials said.
Leila Bozorg, deputy mayor for housing and planning, told a morning press conference: “This is an incredible tragedy. Our thoughts go out to the families affected.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said all utilities in the building have been turned off and all 148 apartments have been vacated. Officials set up a reception center for displaced residents at a nearby school, where the American Red Cross helped provide housing and other needs.
“As you can imagine, this is a very scary and devastating morning for them,” Mamdani said at a news conference Saturday afternoon. “They are not alone. Our city will support them and do whatever it takes to help them get back on their feet.”
The Red Cross said that as of early Saturday afternoon, more than 100 families and 305 people, including 89 children, had been registered as needing emergency assistance.
More than 200 fire and emergency personnel were at the scene, according to the fire department. Some firefighters were briefly trapped in the elevator when the explosion occurred, officials said.
“There were injuries. It was a very, very difficult night and on a very cold night it made it even more difficult,” Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore said.
Approximately 500,000 New Yorkers live in aging buildings managed by the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA), the nation’s largest housing authority.
Many properties date back to the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. In 2019, a federal inspector was appointed to address long-standing problems such as lead paint, mold and a lack of heat. When Ombudsman Bart Schwartz ends his five-year term in 2024, he noted that the top issue facing residents remains “the poor condition of NYCHA buildings.”
In October, a massive 20-story brick chimney on the side of a housing authority apartment building in the Bronx collapsed after an explosion, sending large amounts of debris falling to the ground, but surprisingly no one was injured. Officials linked it to a natural gas boiler.
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This story has been updated to correct that the building is no longer operated by New York City Housing Authority and has been privately managed since 2024.
