The explosion, followed by a fire, also led to the poisoning of several people by the fumes. It was still impossible to enter the building at eight o’clock Monday morning.
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Seven dead, including two children, one seriously injured and three others more slightly, this is the latest report announced by the prosecution after a very strong explosion which occurred around 1:30 a.m. on Monday February 14 in a building in Saint-Laurent-de. -la-Salanque (Occitanie), indicates France Bleu Roussillon. The explosion was followed by a fire.
The explosion occurred on the ground floor of this building, at the level of a grocery-sandwich shop. At least eleven apartments were affected by the explosion and the fire. Gas cylinders were found near the building. It is not yet known if they are the cause or if they have aggravated the explosion. The prosecution has opened an investigation for “arson causing death”. The Minister Delegate for Public Accounts Olivier Dussopt, traveling in the Pyrénées-Orientales, went there. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin, currently in Montpellier, also announced that he was getting sidetracked.
An explosion followed by a fire killed at least 7 people in the Pyrénées-Orientales. I interrupt my trip to Montpellier to go there. I give my full support to the mobilized state services and to the inhabitants. Thoughts to the victims and their loved ones.
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) February 14, 2022
The seriously injured is a 27-year-old man who jumped out of a first-floor window to escape the flames. He was first evacuated to Perpignan hospital before being transferred to Montpellier University Hospital. The slightly injured suffer from smoke poisoning.
At 8 a.m., firefighters were still battling the fire smoldering in the attic of a building. It is currently impossible for them to enter the building most affected and which threatens to collapse. A dozen local residents are housed in the rural home. More than 85 firefighters are still mobilized.