In the French city of Marseille, in the south of France, a four-storey apartment building collapsed on Saturday evening. At least five people were injured. Because a fire also broke out afterwards, rescuers cannot search for other possible victims. This is reported by the mayor of the city.
According to Mayor Benoit Payan, the fire is still raging after the collapse that occurred around 12:40 am. “The fire service is assessing the best way to put out the fire on a minute-by-minute basis, as people may still be alive,” he said. About 100 firefighters are on the scene. As long as there is fire, no dogs and search teams can be deployed. “We must be prepared for casualties in this terrible tragedy,” said the mayor.
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visited the scene of the incident and said there are believed to be “four to 10” people still under the rubble.
Gas leak “possible option”
Residents have been evacuated from two other buildings that were damaged by the collapse and are also at risk of collapse. Five of them were slightly injured. “About thirty” other buildings in the street, the rue de Tivoli, were also evacuated as a precaution. The evacuees were housed in a school, said regional prefect Christophe Mirmand.
“There are strong suspicions that an explosion caused the collapse, but we have to remain very careful about the causes at this stage,” said Mirmand. He added that a gas leak is “a possible option”.
The authorities have now launched an investigation into the cause of the disaster.
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