At least five people died in an explosion at an apartment building on the British Channel Island of Jersey, police said. Earlier there were three deaths. Four more people are missing. Police believe it is unlikely that the emergency services will find survivors.
The explosion at the port in the capital Saint Helier happened early yesterday morning, around 04:00 local time. A three-story building completely collapsed. The fire caused by the explosion was extinguished. In the course of Sunday it only became clear how large the scale of the disaster is, with several fatalities.
The rescue operation has now turned into a salvage operation, because there is little hope that the missing victims will be found. That’s going to take some time. “We’re not here for days, we’re here for weeks,” police chief Robin Smith told reporters.
The cause of the explosion is under investigation. Local residents had called the fire brigade on Friday evening about a smell of gas. Partly for this reason, the head of the Jersey police department has already called for the investigation to be carried out independently. It cannot be ruled out that those involved could also be prosecuted criminally.
Just over 100,000 people live on the island of Jersey, which lies in the English Channel between France and England. It is a self-governing island under the British Crown.
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