A Friday night explosion and fire at a NYCHA development in Crown Heights left an 18-year-old man dead, police and fire officials said, with a lithium-ion battery reportedly tied to the deadly blaze.
The blast erupted around 7 p.m. on the 12th floor of Albany Houses near Prospect Place, sending more than 120 firefighters and EMS workers rushing to the Brooklyn apartment complex.
Crews brought the fire under control by about 8 p.m., officials said.
NY1 reported that the fire was connected to a lithium-ion battery, a type of power source that has been linked to a growing number of serious fires across New York City.
The victim was taken to One Brooklyn Health-Interfaith Medical Center with severe, life-threatening injuries and was later pronounced dead by hospital staff, according to police.
MORE STORY: Virginia Removes Confederate Statues Through State Budget Provision
A neighbor who knew the family of the victim told PIX11 that they were “talking to the mother last week…we was having good talk about our kids.”
“And that’s messed up how we both moved here young with our small children and for her to lose one…that is tremendous,” she said.
The victim has not been identified and authorities noted that the cause of the explosion is under investigation.
The FDNY could not confirm or deny whether a lithium-ion battery was connected to the fire.