NEW YORK (AP) — A massive brick chimney running 20 stories up the side of a New York City apartment building collapsed after an explosion Wednesday, sending tons of debris plummeting to the ground.

Watch the news conference in the video player above.

The falling bricks buried a sidewalk, landed on the public housing building’s playground and sent a cloud of dust billowing over the block in the Bronx, but amazingly did not injure anyone.

“We avoided a major disaster here,” said Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson at a news conference.

Mayor Eric Adams confirmed no injuries or deaths were reported in the collapse of the chimney, which rose up from the building’s boiler room. Officials were notified of the explosion just after 8 a.m. and were trying to determine if there was a gas leak

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