Marseille building collapse: at least six fatalities

An explosion destroyed a four-story apartment building in Marseille, a city in southern France. The explosion took place on Sunday at 00:49 local time (22:49 GMT on Saturday). Investigators are looking for a gas leak even if the source is yet unknown. Six dead have already been discovered, while two people are still missing. Furthermore, the explosion caused minor injuries to five people from nearby buildings, and 200 people had to be evacuated.

To accommodate the residents who had to leave their houses, two new schools and a neighborhood gym have been opened. There is also psychological support available. Rescue operations continued in the La Plaine district, according to officials. One of the 100 firefighters who arrived on the scene described the search for survivors as a "race against the clock".

A few hours later, two adjoining buildings partially fell, although no additional information of casualties was reported. Benoit Payan, the mayor of Marseille, issued a warning that there was still a chance of surrounding structures to collapse. Progress was slowed down by the fire, and it was challenging for sniffer dogs to find dead or survivors.

French President Emmanuel Macron expressed on Twitter his gratitude to the emergency workers and said that he was thinking of those affected and their loved ones. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin and Housing Minister Olivier Klein visited the area on Sunday. Deputy Mayor Yannick Ohanessian told reporters that "several" witnesses had mentioned a "suspicious smell of gas."

Following the collapse of two old houses in the working-class neighborhood of Noailles, which left eight people dead, Marseille's housing regulations came under fire in 2018. After that tragedy, charities calculated that 40,000 city residents were residing in subparly constructed homes, but on Sunday, officials seemed to rule out structural problems as the root of the most recent collapse.