A New York City family is searching for their loved one who they say was on a date on the ground floor restaurant of an East Village building that went up in flames following an explosion.
Nicholas Figueroa, 23, was last known to be at Sushi Park, located at 121 Second Avenue, on Thursday afternoon before a blast in the basement shook the structure, the New York Daily News reports. The building was quickly engulfed in fire.
Neal Figueroa said he can't remember the last time he saw his brother, a recent graduate of Buffalo State University, before Thursday's explosion. The four "handsome" Figueroa brothers, Neal said, are always "on the move" and working hard.
Neal talked to reporters Friday morning outside the Red Cross location at an East Village library where he, his family and their friends are "praying" to hear that Nicholas is still alive.
"I just want my brother to be safe," he said. "I want him to smile again. I want him to be home. There's no place like home. I know he's just as eager to see us as we are to see him."
Figueroa’s bank has a record of him paying his bill, according to the New York Daily News. His date, a coworker at Bowlmor Lanes at Chelsea Piers, survived the blast with a broken nose, but she doesn’t remember much.
Figueroa’s family members have been frantically checking area hospitals and enlisting police aid to find him, but so far their efforts have not succeeded.
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: New York City Fire Department personel try to extinguish the fire broke out after a massive explosion in a building on 2nd Avenue of Manhattan's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York, United States. Officials have reported that two buildings partially collapsed and engulfed in flames and at least 12 people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. (Photo by Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: A hose snakes through the street as firefighters battle a blaze caused by an explosion that forced two buildings to collapse on Second Avenue in Manhattan's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York City. Officials have reported that at least 12 people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: New York City Fire Department personel work to extinguish a fire as a building burns after an explosion on 2nd Avenue of Manhatten's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York City. Officials have reported that at least 12 people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: A local resident takes a picture as building burns after an explosion on 2nd Avenue of Manhatten's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York City. Officials have reported that at least 12 people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: A building burns after an explosion on 2nd Avenue of Manhatten's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York City. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: Local residents watch as New York City Fire Department personel work to extinguish a fire as a building burns after an explosion on 2nd Avenue of Manhatten's East Village on March 26, 2015 in New York City. Officials have reported that at least 12 people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
East Village Building Collapse after Fire
Building at 121 Second Avenue in East Village, near Seventh Street collapsed after it was rocked by a blast and a fierce fire that sent black smoke into the sky.(Photo By: Joe Marino/NY Daily News via Getty Images)
East Village Building Collapse after Fire
Building at 121 Second Avenue in East Village, near Seventh Street collapsed after it was rocked by a blast and a fierce fire that sent black smoke into the sky.(Photo By: Joe Marino/NY Daily News via Getty Images)
East Village Building Collapse after Fire
Building at 121 Second Avenue in East Village, near Seventh Street collapsed after it was rocked by a blast and a fierce fire that sent black smoke into the sky.(Photo By: Joe Marino/NY Daily News via Getty Images)
East Village Building Collapse after Fire
Building at 121 Second Avenue in East Village, near Seventh Street collapsed after it was rocked by a blast and a fierce fire that sent black smoke into the sky.(Photo By: Joe Marino/NY Daily News via Getty Images)
Blast collapses a building in New York
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - MARCH 26: Smoke rises as the firefighters extinguish a fire caused by a blast occurred at a building in East Village district of New York, United States on March 26, 2015. Local media reports that at least six people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. No casualties have been reported. The cause of the explosion will be clear after the investigation. (Photo by Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: New York Police Department helicopter hovers as smoke rises from a burning building after an explosion on 2nd Avenue on March 26, 2015 in New York City. The seven alarm fire drew firefighters from across the city, with at least 12 injuries being reported. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)
Building Explosion In Manhattan's East Village
NEW YORK, NY - MARCH 26: A building burns after an explosion on 2nd Avenue on March 26, 2015 in New York City. The seven alarm fire drew firefighters from across the city. A number of injuries have been reported. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images)
Blast collapses a building in New York
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - MARCH 26: Smoke rises as the firefighters extinguish a fire caused by a blast occurred at a building in East Village district of New York, United States on March 26, 2015. Local media reports that at least six people were injured but it is unclear if anyone was trapped inside either building. No casualties have been reported. The cause of the explosion will be clear after the investigation. (Photo by Cem Ozdel/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
Fire at 2nd Avenue and 7th Street, New York City, on March 26, 2015.
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