As flames continue to blaze in the rubble of the collapsed residential building in Marseille, rescuers continue to search for missing persons in the rubble. Two bodies were found on the night of Easter Monday. However, it may take some time before the bodies can be recovered, according to the fire service.
A crane and sniffer dogs are deployed at the scene of the accident. However, the ongoing fire made it difficult for the animals. Eight people were reported missing after the collapse. They did not respond to calls, prosecutor Dominique Laurens said on Sunday evening.
Given the difficulties, it will take some time to recover the fatalities, the fire service said when they reported the discovery of the two fatalities around 1 a.m. Monday night. After recovery, the bodies would be identified. French head of state Emmanuel Macron thanked the rescuers in the short message service Twitter. Macron wrote that his thoughts are with those affected and their families.
Mayor: ‘Grief and pain are great’
The four-storey building in the center of Marseille collapsed around 12:40 p.m. on Sunday night. A gas explosion probably caused the collapse. Five people in neighboring houses were injured. Nearly 200 people had to be evacuated from adjacent buildings. “There is a lot of sadness and pain that night,” said Benoît Payan, the mayor of Marseille. “We continue to do everything we can to successfully complete the rescue work,” he continued, assuring that all city and state authorities are still fully operational.
Neighboring buildings partially collapsed
The streets around the collapsed building were closed off after the collapse and numerous emergency services were on the scene. Smoke still rose from the rubble in the evening. According to Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, who was on the scene, it could take “several hours, maybe even longer” before the fire is extinguished. A neighboring building partially collapsed. Eight people who had saved themselves on a roof terrace were brought to safety with ladders. A second neighboring house was in danger of collapsing.
resident: „I was shaken awake”
Witnesses described the explosion to AFP news agency. The massive explosion shook the room she slept in, a resident from one of the neighboring streets said. “I woke up like I was dreaming,” she said. “We smelled a strong smell of gas very quickly, which was still smellable until this morning.”
According to Deputy Mayor Yannick Ohanessian, other residents reported the smell of gas; Surveillance cameras recorded a massive tremor. A gas explosion may have triggered the collapse, said Laurens and the region’s prefect, Christophe Mirmand.
Source: Krone
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