A three-story residential building in Brooklyn, in the Little Haiti section of Flatbush, collapsed today. One person was killed and several were injured. Firefighters are still searching for survivors. The building was located next to an excavation site of a building that had been demolished, and this activity may have been connected to the collapse of the neighboring building. The accident clearly points to the poor condition of U.S. infrastructure, including housing, particularly in the poorer areas in U.S. cities.

Without a focus by the incoming Congress on the issue of the decay of U.S. infrastructure, we will only experience more such catastrophes, perhaps even on a larger scale. The building was built in the 1930s, when U.S. construction was perhaps more permanent than structures built today. Without proper maintenance—and modernization—the best-built building will experience wear and tear over time.