An adult and three children have been taken to hospital in a serious condition after a tree fell in Central Park in New York.

Fire officials in New York are investigating whether a suicidal doctor who was going through a difficult divorce caused an explosion that flattened a four-storey building in the city today.

A four-story building in New York went up in flames and collapsed today after a thunderous explosion that rocked the nearby neighbourhood.

An explosion led to a fire and collapse at a three-storey building on Manhattan’s East Side in New York today.