World
Marseille explosion: Four bodies found after two buildings collapse
Four bodies have been found under the rubble of two buildings that collapsed following an explosion in the south of France.
Rescuers are continuing to search for at least four people in the southern city of Marseille.
Marseille Mayor Benoit Payan said that more than 100 firefighters were searching for those who were trapped when the five-storey residential building collapsed just before 1am on Sunday.
About 200 people have been evacuated from their homes in the area.
“This morning the sorrow and pain are great,” Mr Payan said. “I am thinking of the loved ones of those who suffer and remain in worry. Marseille stands by their side.
“Rescue and search operations continue unabated.”
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Search for missing in Marseille
Marseille prosecutor Dominique Laurens said the burning debris was too hot for dogs in the firefighters’ canine team to work until Sunday afternoon.
An investigation has been opened for involuntary injury and a gas explosion is among the lines of inquiry, Ms Laurens added.
Yannick Ohanessian, Marseille deputy mayor, said: “Over 105 firefighters are mobilized to search for survivors with about 30 vehicles. We also have heavy machinery like diggers on site to clear out the rubble.”
An excavator clears debris on the scene
TV footage showed clouds of smoke rising from the ruins as firefighters tried to douse the flames.
Five people were taken to hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries.
A man who gave his name only as Roland said survivors had “lost everything”.
“We have nothing, not even an ID card,” he told local newspaper La Provence.
He managed to get out of the building at 15 Rue de Tivoli with his wife and two children before it collapsed along with a neighbouring one.
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A fire truck next to one of the collapsed buildings. Pic: BFMTV/via Reuters
There was also a partial collapse of a third building.
In total, 30 buildings in the area were evacuated, said Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who visited the site.
“Thoughts are with Marseille,” President Emmanuel Macron tweeted.
In 2018, about a kilometre from the collapses, three buildings considered not fit for habitation also collapsed,
killing eight people.
The mayor of Marseille said a parallel could not be drawn between the two events, while the prosecutor said the buildings that collapsed on Sunday were not known to have any structural problems.