three dead and six missing in the collapse of a building in Sicily

Three people died and six others are missing after the collapse of a four-story building caused by an explosion on Saturday evening, in the city of Ravanusa, in Sicily (Italy), according to a new report released Sunday, December 12 by the local authorities. A previous report reported two dead and seven missing.

Two women were found alive under the rubble and helpers, helped by dogs, are still looking for the missing people. Television footage shows a gigantic pile of rubble and wooden beams littering the ground, and neighboring buildings charred and damaged.

A gas explosion could be the cause of the incident, according to the authorities, who have opened an investigation. “Gas probably accumulated in a cavity. This pocket of gas could then find an accidental trigger: a car, an elevator, an electrical application”Agrigento fire chief Giuseppe Merendino commented on Rai News 24.

Shortly after the explosion, the mayor of Ravanusa, Carmello D’Angelo, appealed on Facebook to “anyone with shovels and bulldozers”. “It’s a disaster”, he said. About 50 people have been displaced, the mayor told Rai News 24.