The 3 ½ story wood-and-brick residential building lost its right wall just after 9:30 a.m., and what's left of the building is leaning to the right and is visibly unstable.
Officials from the Depts of Buildings and Housing Preservation and Development are worried the rest of the building may come down, and they may ask that the rest of the building be demolished before it falls on its own.
The collapse and the ensuing emergency response has forced the closure of Franklin Avenue between Clifton and Lafayette Avenues.
Mass transit services are not affected.