A mother and her young son were seriously injured in the deadly Brooklyn building collapse after moving into their apartment less than two weeks before the disaster.
Leidy Álvarez, 31, told The Post from her bed at Kings Hospital on Saturday that she, her husband Anderson and their two sons, Pablo, 9, and Joseph, 3, were still unpacking their second-floor apartment at 1321 Flatbush Ave. when the building’s facade gave way around 4 p.m. Wednesday.
“We had been there for a week and a half,” she said quietly, a medical cloth covering her face as she lay in bed.
“We had finally gotten the apartment, and I told Anderson we would buy the furniture this week or next. He had bought a rug so Joseph could play comfortably. We were very happy.”
Álvarez, who is from Colombia, said Anderson was away from home when the collapse killed eight people — including two children — and injured 18 others.
Disturbing footage from Álvarez’s living room shows the moment she, Pablo and Joseph were struck by falling debris.
“I asked my son Pablo to get the baby bottle and milk so I could feed Joseph, and then everything happened. I don’t remember anything after that,” she recalled.
Álvarez had been on a video call when the building began to crumble.
“They watched everything collapse,” she said. “They told me, ‘What happened? Hang up and call Anderson!’ They could hear Joseph and Pablo crying in the background.
“Anderson told me that by the time I called him, the house had already collapsed. I started screaming and begging for help for my children, but I don’t remember doing that. The only thing I remember is being in the ambulance before losing consciousness again, with Pablo on my left, covered in blood, and Joseph on my right.”
Álvarez said Joseph escaped without serious injury, but Pablo suffered severe head trauma. He remains in the intensive care unit and is in stable condition.
“He is out of danger, but he is very swollen. His skull was opened. He is getting better. We hope everything turns out well,” Álvarez said.
Álvarez suffered back injuries, a broken collarbone and four fractured ribs. She is also dealing with persistent headaches.
Álvarez had been close friends with Juan Daniel Salvada Guzman, 31, who died alongside his daughter, Daniela Salvada Rodriquez, 9, and her cousin, Kevin Santiago Reyes Gonzales, 10. The families had known each other for three years.
She last saw Guzman, who was also from Colombia, on Monday or Tuesday, when he painted the door to her apartment.
“I told him, ‘I’ll pay you with an arepa, an egg and a glass of water — and sit on the floor because we have nowhere else to sit,’” she recalled with a weak laugh.
“He would go without food himself just to help someone else. [His wife] Estefania is the same. It is all so incredibly sad.”
Residents Mamadou Barry, 23, and Mamadou Ndiaye, 31, both from Guinea, were also killed. The men were cousins and shared an apartment.
Three construction workers at the neighboring site at 2625 Bedford Ave. also died in the collapse: Gabriel Siguencia, 22, of Ecuador; Edgar Sapón Gutierrez, 26, of Guatemala; and José Luis Caguana Cosquillo, 26, of Ecuador.
“We’re trying to understand why the contractor had them working,” Kayla Chamborazado, Siguencia’s stepsister, told The Post.
“They weren’t supposed to be working on that building. It appears the building had numerous violations. We’re very confused about why construction was continuing.”
Excavation work at the neighboring construction site is being investigated as a possible factor in the collapse after an anonymous tip to the Department of Buildings alleged that contractors were digging too close to the apartment building.
The city approved deep-excavation plans for the construction project that likely contributed to the collapse, even though the site lacked critical structural support, The Post previously reported.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office has opened a criminal investigation with the Department of Buildings and the Department of Investigation. City officials are still working to determine who was responsible.
“I think all of us survivors are in shock right now,” Álvarez said. “We don’t understand what is happening. It feels like a dream — a nightmare.”