Images: Firefighters battle blaze, building collapse in New York City
NEW YORK - Firefighters on Friday used high-powered water towers to extinguish pockets of fire at the site of an apparent gas explosion in Manhattan's trendy East Village as authorities reported that two people were still unaccounted for.
Nineteen people were injured, four critically, after the powerful blast and fire sent flames soaring and debris flying Thursday afternoon. The police department hasn't yet issued official missing-person's reports on the two people who haven't been located, the mayor's office said.
Preliminary evidence suggested that a gas explosion amid plumbing and gas work inside the building was to blame. An hour before the blast, utility company inspectors decided the work being done there was faulty.
The explosion caused the collapse of three five-story buildings and damage to a fourth, which was seven stories tall, the Fire Department of New York said.
On Friday, firefighters doused gallons of water over the wreckage, a giant wave of crumbled brick, twisted metal and splintered wood.
A light rain tamped down much of the acrid burning smell, but neighbors said the sirens and smell from the burning buildings kept them up throughout the night.
Friday morning was the first chance for many to see the damage up close.
Firefighters work the site of a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
New York City firefighters work the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. Orange flames and black smoke are billowing from the facade and roof of the building near several New York University buildings. (AP Photo/Suzanne Mitchell)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
New York City firefighters work the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
New York City firefighters work at the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Surrounded by clouds of smoke, New York City firefighters on a ladder spray water at the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)
A New York City fire department arson investigator arrives at the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
New York City firefighters spray water at the scene of a fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
New York City firefighters work the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)
Firefighters work the site of a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
New York City firefighters work at the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
Firefighters work at the scene of a large fire and a partial building collapse in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2015. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano)
Firefighters spray water on a collapsed building in New York's East Village, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in New York. An apparent gas explosion leveled an apartment building, partially destroyed another and launched rubble and shards of glass across streets in the heart of Manhattan on Thursday, injuring at least a dozen people. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)
Firefighters carry an injured colleague on a stretcher at the scene of a collapsed building on 2nd Avenue and 7th Street in the East Village neighborhood of New York on Thursday, March 26, 2014. (AP Photo/Louis Lanzano)
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