Up to 10 people may be buried after building collapse in Marseille – minister

Up to 10 people may be buried under the debris of a building that collapsed following an explosion in France’s port city of Marseille, but a fire deep within the rubble has hindered rescue efforts, the French interior minister said.

Officials have determined that at least four people lived in the building, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said.

It was not known if anyone was killed in the collapse or explosion, or what triggered the blast, he said.

Mr Darmanin, who visited the site, provided the update nearly 11 hours after the five-storey building collapsed before 1am.

Firefighters gather near the street where a building collapsed in Marseille, southern FranceFirefighters gather near the street where a building collapsed in Marseille, southern France (Bishr El Touni/AP)
More than 100 firefighters, aided by specialists, worked through the night to access and extinguish the fire, which the minister said was burning a few metres (feet) under the debris.

The delicate operation proceeded with the aim of keeping firefighters safe, preventing further harm to people potentially trapped in the rubble and not compromising vulnerable buildings nearby.

Some 30 buildings in the area were evacuated, Mr Darmanin said.

The building that collapsed is located on a narrow street in the centre of Marseille, adding to an array of difficulties for firefighters and rescue workers.

The intense heat made it impossible to send in dog teams to search.

Robots were reportedly being deployed.

Marseille mayor Benoit Payan said that two buildings that share walls with the one that collapsed were partially brought down before one later caved in.

It was among the evacuated structures.

We’re trying to drown the fire while preserving the lives of eventual victims under the rubble
Lionel Mathieu, Marseille fire brigade
Six people were taken to hospital.

“We’re trying to drown the fire while preserving the lives of eventual victims under the rubble,” Lionel Mathieu, commander of the Marseille fire brigade, said during a televised briefing.

“Firefighters are gauging minute by minute the best way to put out the fire,” Mr Payan said.

“We must prepare to have victims,” he said grimly.

An explosion was the “probable” cause of the building collapse, Mr Payan said, but later stressed that “no conclusions can be drawn” without an investigation.

The collapsed building is located in an old quarter in the centre of France’s second-largest city.

The noise from the explosion resounded in other neighbourhoods.

Nearby streets were blocked off.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne both tweeted their thoughts for people affected and thanks to the firefighters.