Sicily: 3 reported dead, 6 missing after explosion causes buildings to collapse
- Blast thought to have been caused by a gas leak
- A heavily pregnant woman believed to be among the missing
Firefighters in Sicily were digging through the rubble of a collapsed apartment building Sunday in the search for six missing people after an explosion apparently caused by a gas leak killed at least three, authorities said.
The building was occupied by nine members of an extended family, and two visiting relatives – a heavily pregnant woman and her husband – were also on the premises when the explosion occurred late Saturday in the town of Ravanusa, firefighters said.
Videos from the fire brigade showed debris in the distance, dust and mountains of rubble. Fires repeatedly flared up. Sniffer dogs were searching through the rubble.
It is believed the missing and dead are all from one family.
Two women were rescued overnight. One of them, 80-year-old Rosa Carmina, told La Repubblica daily that the lights went out suddenly “and the ceiling and floors collapsed.” Her sister-in-law, who lived on the floor above her, also survived and was rescued from beneath a pile of rubble.
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The explosion also collapsed three other buildings that appear to have been unoccupied, and shattered windows in three more.
“It was certainly a gas leak that created a bubble of methane,” said the head of Sicily’s civil protection agency, Salvatore Cocina.
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He said a preliminary finding indicated that the functioning of an lift may have set off the explosion.
A priest who was celebrating mass nearby on Saturday evening said he heard a loud roar and saw flames rising from a group of houses.
“It is a huge tragedy … Let’s pray to ask God to avoid more deaths,” said the priest, Filippo Barbera.
The public prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation.
