NYPD Says 2 People Unaccounted For After Manhattan Building Explosion

New York City police officers have reported that at least two people are missing after an explosion caused a building collapse and fire in the city's East Village on Thursday.

The explosion happened Thursday afternoon at the corner of Second Avenue and East 7th Street in Manhattan's East Village, when an explosion caused part of the building to collapse and resulted in a seven-alarm fire.

Authorities say that nearly 24 hours after the incident, 25 people are reported injured, with four being critical. Additionally, authorities say two people are still unaccounted for following the explosion.

One of those people is Nicholas Figueroa, who was reportedly having lunch at a sushi restaurant located in the building when the blast went off. Figueroa did not show up to his job Thursday evening, and his brother tells CNN that they cannot find him.

"We started calling everywhere," Neal Figueroa told the media outlet, adding that they searched the hospital, to no avail. "We went to every hospital [...] he wasn't there."

"I don't care what my brother is doing as long as he comes home," Neal Figueroa said.

The other missing person is reportedly a worker who is employed at the same sushi restaurant.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a statement to reporters that although the investigation into Thursday's incident is not complete, it appears to be gas-related.

"Preliminary evidence suggests a gas-related explosion. That investigation is ongoing. The initial impact appears to have been caused by plumbing and gas work that was occurring inside 121 2nd Avenue," de Blasio told reporters Friday just blocks from where the explosion took place.