A Brooklyn, New York, building was reduced to rubble in an explosion on Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015. Initially police suspected a gas explosion but later determined another cause, hair care products. Now investigators are turning to the actions of a dead woman pulled from the rubble.
Police are stating that beautician Francisca Figueroa, age 48, posted suicidal thoughts online before the blast and owned the nearby Franchezka Unisex Salon. Investigators believe she may have used hair care products and other chemicals to create the fire and explosion that killed an elderly woman and injured 13 others. Figueroa was from the Dominican Republic and was a mother of two teens. Her children were not at home at the time of the blast. It is suspected that Figueroa was distraught because of financial difficulties and also because her landlord had asked her to leave the building. At first police thought that a stove was improperly moved, but later found out the gas had been turned off in Figueroa’s apartment so a gas explosion was soon ruled out as a cause.
