On April 9, 2023, a residential building in Marseille, southern France collapsed in an explosion followed by a fire that has hindered rescue efforts. Local officials have reported that eight people are not responding to calls and are thought to be under the rubble of two buildings that collapsed. The cause of the explosion is yet to be determined, according to Marseille prosecutor Dominique Laurens. The collapse caused a fire that has complicated rescue efforts and investigations, and it has not been brought under control.
Television footage shows clouds of smoke rising from the rubble, as firefighters try to put out the fire while trained dogs are used to locate victims. Five people were taken to the hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries. Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visited the site and reported that 30 buildings in the area were evacuated.
In 2018, three buildings considered unfit for habitation collapsed about one kilometer from the current tragedy, killing eight people. The mayor of Marseille said a parallel could not be drawn, while the prosecutor stated that the buildings that collapsed on Sunday were not known to have any structural problems. President Emmanuel Macron tweeted: “Thoughts are with Marseille.”
A man who gave his name only as Roland told local newspaper La Provence: “We have nothing, not even an ID card. We have lost everything.” Roland managed to get out of the building on 15 Rue de Tivoli with his wife and two children before it collapsed, together with a neighboring building. A third building partly collapsed.
This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed.
