Paris explosion: One person still feared buried in rubble after blast at fashion school injures dozens

One person is still missing and four are in critical condition after dozens were injured in a powerful explosion in a building in central Paris.

The explosion at around 4:55pm local time on Wednesday at the Paris American Academy on Rue Saint-Jacques left 37 people injured.

The blast sparked a fire that sent smoke soaring over the French capital’s monuments and prompted an evacuation of other properties, authorities said.

Officials are exploring a possible gas leak as the explosion but Paris police spokesperson Loubna Atta said it was too early to determine the source of the fire and could not confirm reports it was caused by a gas explosion.

Huge plumes of black smoke swelled into the air over the surrounding neighbourhood, but the fire was quickly brought under control.

“The explosion was extremely violent,” said Florence Berthout, mayor of the fifth arrondissement of the city, where the explosion happened.

Key points

• Blast occurred at Paris American Academy in Rue Saint-Jacques in the 5th arrondissement

• 33 people injured, four seriously, two feared buried in rubble

• Huge cloud of smoke billowed out over rooftops

• Officials say too early to determine cause of blast and fire

• Fires quickly brought under control by emergency services

Huge explosion rips through central Paris building

Wednesday 21 June 2023 17:49 , Oliver O'Connell

A huge explosion has ripped through a building in the French capital starting a blaze that sent smoke billowing into the air.

There are reports of seven people in critical condition and a further nine are believed to have been injured.

Emergency services respond to the scene of the explosion

Wednesday 21 June 2023 17:59 , Oliver O'Connell

Watch live: Emergency services respond to gas explosion in Paris

Fire under control

Wednesday 21 June 2023 18:12 , Oliver O'Connell

The smell of smoke lingered in the air while the plume of smoke started to clear as firefighters battled the blaze.

At around 6.40pm local time, Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said the fire was under control.

Developing story: Seven people in critical condition

Wednesday 21 June 2023 18:15 , Oliver O'Connell

At least seven people are in critical condition after an explosion started a blaze in central Paris.

Paris police said nine other people were also injured.

The facade of a building collapsed and emergency services were working to establish whether anyone was still inside, an official said.

Chris Stevenson has the latest for The Independent.

Seven people in critical condition after Paris explosion

In pictures: Emergency services respond to explosion and fire

Wednesday 21 June 2023 18:35 , Oliver O'Connell

Wednesday 21 June 2023 18:50 , Oliver O'Connell

More than 200 firefighters were involved in the emergency response and were seen hosing down buildings, and Parisians posted images on Twitter of a huge plume of smoke visible across much of the city, including over the domed Pantheon monument.

The neighbourhood, close to the Jardin du Luxembourg and the Sorbonne University, was cordoned off and scores of emergency workers filled the area.

“This is chaos,” said Christopher Gaglione, who said he witnessed the scene.

“I heard a huge explosion,” said local bar employee Khal Ilsey. “And as I was leaving the restaurant, I saw flames at the end of Rue Saint-Jacques.”

Wednesday 21 June 2023 18:55 , Oliver O'Connell

The BBC reports that the blast took place in a building that housed a design school and the Catholic education system headquarters, which was next to the Val de Grâce church.

Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said that initial checks of security camera footage suggested the explosion occurred within the building.

Witnesses say there was a strong smell of gas before the blast, though this has not yet been confirmed by authorities.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:03 , Oliver O'Connell

There are multiple reports that the building at the centre of the explosion was the Paris American Academy design school, which is popular with foreign students.

Sky News reports that two people may be missing following the blast.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:05 , Oliver O'Connell

Art historian Monique Mosser said: “I thought it was a bomb.” Many of the windows in her building had been blown out by the blast’s shockwave, she said.

“A neighbour knocked on the door and told me that the fire brigade were asking us to evacuate as quickly as possible. I grabbed my laptop, my phone. I didn’t even think to take get my medication.”

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:20 , Oliver O'Connell

“The explosion was extremely violent,” Florence Berthout, mayor for the fifth district of the city, where the explosion happened.

She said four people were in “absolute emergency” condition and described pieces of glass still falling from buildings close to where it happened in the Rue Saint-Jacques.

As many as 24 people have been injured according to reports.

Recap: Almost 30 injured in explosion in central Paris

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:22 , Oliver O'Connell

A blast ripped through a street in the busy Latin Quarter of central Paris on Wednesday, injuring about 30 people, starting fires, and collapsing the facade of a building housing a design school popular with foreign students.

Rescue workers were searching for two missing people feared buried under rubble, authorities said.

Witnesses described a deafening explosion and a giant fireball that rose several stories high on the Rue Saint-Jacques, in the 5th arrondissement not far from the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral and Luxembourg Gardens.

Rubble from the building in which the Paris American Academy is located lay strewn across the street.

At least 29 people were injured, including four who are in critical condition, police said.

Soldiers helped secure a safety perimeter around the scene.

The Paris prosecutor’s office said it was too early to say what caused the blast.

Reuters

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:35 , Oliver O'Connell

The Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo, is at the scene and the area has been cordoned off.

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has warned people to avoid the area.

The neighbourhood in which the explosion occurred runs south from the Latin Quarter in Paris’s Left Bank. It is popular with tourists and is known for its student population.

Local deputy mayor, Edouard Civel, referred to a gas explosion in a Twitter post and witnesses told BFM TV there had been a strong smell of gas moments before the blast.

“The shop shook violently, it felt like bomb blast,” said Rahman Oliur who manages a food shop a few doors down the street from the Paris American Academy believed to have been at the centre of the explosion.

Bar worker Khal Ilsey said he heard a “huge explosion” before running outside and seeing a violent blaze at the end of the street.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 19:50 , Oliver O'Connell

The blast occurred at 4.55pm local time, just as workers were heading home. The area is frequented by tourists and foreign students in the early summer but there was no immediate indication that foreigners were among the missing or wounded.

Several nearby buildings were evacuated. More than two hours after the explosion, first aiders were still treating residents for shock. One woman fainted in the street.

Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said early indications were that the blast originated inside the building. Investigators would look into whether building conditions were in breach of regulations or if an individual had acted without due care.

More than 200 firefighters were involved in the emergency response. TV images showed firefighters manning hoses and aiming jets of water at the blaze while a plume of thick black smoke billowed into the sky.

Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said later that the blaze had been brought under control.

Reuters

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Witness says design school frequented by American students

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:10 , Oliver O'Connell

The Times reports witness, Nathan Gomot, a waiter at a nearby cocktail bar saying: “It was an ordinary day. We were preparing for the [national] music festival this evening when we felt an enormous explosion. We looked out and saw debris all over the place. The façade of the building had fallen into the street and the block of flats opposite had also caught fire.”

He added that the design school was frequented by “Americans who come to learn about French fashion. We often serve them in this bar. When I see the state of the building, it is worrying.”

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:20 , Oliver O'Connell

‘Everything shook. The windows exploded'

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Le Parisien has compiled a number of witness accounts that we have translated here:

Quentin, a student at the Ecole des Mines on the Boulevard Saint-Michel, was in front of the Val-de-Grâce at the time of the events.

“I heard a boom and I saw a ball of fire 20 or 30 metres high,” he says. “Then the building collapsed with a huge noise.”

The explosion was so strong, explains an employee of Catholic Education, whose headquarters is nearby, that she “felt it in (her) body almost like in a film”.

“I felt a big blast, like a shock wave,” says Loris, who works at Le Puzzle bar, about twenty metres from the scene of the disaster. “Everything shook. The windows exploded, the manholes rose. The building collapsed, everyone started running. The building opposite also caught fire.”

What followed the explosion was chaos says Maïa, 13, who was taking part in a karate class next door to the blast: “The fire alarm went off in the building and the teacher asked us to leave the premises. We didn't know what was going on, there was a bit of panic. On leaving, we saw the flames rising very high, around ten metres.”

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Wednesday 21 June 2023 20:50 , Oliver O'Connell

The Guardian reports another witness account from Alexandra, a local pharmacist. She said: “We heard an incredible, very loud explosion at around 5pm, we felt the force of it. We thought this isn’t a storm, this is serious. We heard the fire services. I went out to see if I could help. But it’s all shut-off. There are large numbers of fire services and emergency services. It’s atrocious.”

Where did the explosion occur?

Wednesday 21 June 2023 21:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Rue Saint-Jacques in the 5th arrondissement of central Paris leads from the Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral to the Sorbonne University and the Val de Grace military hospital and is a few blocks from the popular Jardin du Luxembourg.

The Latin Quarter is famed as the home to many expatriate and French writers, musicians and other artists over the years.

Macron gives thanks to emergency services ahead of Élysée concert

Wednesday 21 June 2023 21:12 , Oliver O'Connell

“I would like to start by saying a word for those who were hit by the explosion which happened just a few hours ago in Paris,” said President Emmanuel Macron on stage as he welcomed concertgoers to a music festival at the Élysée Palace. “I want to say a word to all the victims, the families, who are living in anguish and difficulty as we [await the final outcome] and to thank once again the emergency services who mobilised.”

Recap: Police look at gas leak as possible cause of explosion

Wednesday 21 June 2023 21:20 , Oliver O'Connell

A strong explosion rocked a building in Paris' Left Bank on Wednesday, injuring at least 24 people, igniting a fire that sent smoke soaring over the French capital's monuments and prompting an evacuation of other properties, authorities said. Police were investigating suspicions that a gas leak caused the blast.

The facade of the building in the 5th arrondissement collapsed. Emergency services were searching for two people who might be trapped inside, the district's mayor said. The explosion happened near the historic Val de Grace military hospital, in one of the most upscale neighborhoods of the French capital.

Some 270 firefighters were involved in putting out the flames and 70 emergency vehicles were sent to the scene. The fire was contained Wednesday evening but not yet extinguished as Paris bars and restaurants celebrated the summer solstice with a citywide annual music festival.

AP

Interior minister raises number of injured to 37

Wednesday 21 June 2023 21:37 , Oliver O'Connell

Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin told reporters the number of injured had been raised to 37, including four in critical condition.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 21:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Sirens wailed as ambulances passed through the neighbourhood, but residents started to move freely again on the previously cordoned-off street, rue Saint-Jacques. Associated Press reporters said smoke had stopped pouring out of the building where the explosion occurred.

Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said the building housed a private school, the Paris American Academy. The school was founded in 1965 and offers teaching in fashion design, interior design, fine arts and creative writing.

A Paris police official told the AP that 24 people were injured, including four in critical condition and 20 with less severe injuries. The injuries were sustained mainly when people were blown off their feet by the blast, the official said.

AP

‘I found my husband in shock'

Wednesday 21 June 2023 22:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Jema Halbert, who owns a butcher’s shop close to the explosion site, said she had gone upstairs to fetch something when the explosion occurred.

Suspicions over gas leak as cause

Wednesday 21 June 2023 22:20 , Oliver O'Connell

Edouard Civel, deputy mayor of the 5th arrondissement, attributed the explosion to a gas leak but other officials were more cautious. A judicial official said a gas explosion was one of the possible causes under investigation.

District Mayor Florence Berthout said on French TV channel BFM that firefighters were searching for two people believed to have been inside the building at the time of the blast. “The explosion was extremely violent,” she said, describing pieces of glass still falling from buildings.

AP

Wednesday 21 June 2023 22:40 , Oliver O'Connell

Renowned Greek-French filmmaker Costa-Gavras, 90, was among the witnesses to the explosion and spoke to the Associated Press.

Wednesday 21 June 2023 23:30 , Oliver O'Connell

‘Extremely violent’ explosion rips through central Paris street

Watch: Immediate aftermath of Paris explosion

Thursday 22 June 2023 00:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Shaken locals wait anxiously nearby site of explosion

Thursday 22 June 2023 00:15 , Oliver O'Connell

Rahman Oliur was anxiously waiting at a corner of a Parisian street on Wednesday, shortly after a blast ripped through it, injuring at least 30 and blowing up the front of his bazaar.

"The shop exploded. It felt like it was a bomb, an attack," said Oliur, 27, still shaken by the explosion that he said miraculously left him unscathed. "If I had been closer to the window, I would not have made it."

He said one of his neighbours wasn’t so lucky. He saw her leave the building with her two children, blood dripping from her injured arm.

Now that they had gotten out, his main concern was knowing whether his shop, located at 282 rue Saint-Jacques, in the heart of the Latin Quarter, would be secure as authorities were blocking the perimeter while safety operations were under way.

"I’m very scared, I don’t know how I’m going to handle security for the night," he said.

Reuters

01:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Across the street, local bar L’Oree du Bois had become a rallying point for local residents in search of a place to stay for the night, as they were not hopeful they could return to their homes immediately.

Firefighters and medics were comforting older residents whom they had just evacuated from their buildings.

Some were speculating about the origin of the blast, suspecting a gas leak, like 75-year-old Monique Mosser. “We’re being told it’s gas, as they keep digging holes in every street of Paris ...,” she said, referring to local work that was being done in the street.

Like Oliur, Mosser also thought the blast sounded like a bomb. “It’s really nerve-racking, as if a plane was falling on your head.”

Quentin Huet, 20, a student at the nearby Ecole des Mines graduate school, told Reuters it was not just the sound that scared him.

“I saw a gigantic fireball, 20 or 30 metres (65 to 100 feet) high — the stuff you see in movies or on TV,” he said.

Reuters

02:00 , Oliver O'Connell

‘Everything shook. The windows exploded’

03:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Le Parisien has compiled a number of witness accounts that we have translated here:

Quentin, a student at the Ecole des Mines on the Boulevard Saint-Michel, was in front of the Val-de-Grâce at the time of the events.

“I heard a boom and I saw a ball of fire 20 or 30 metres high,” he says. “Then the building collapsed with a huge noise.”

The explosion was so strong, explains an employee of Catholic Education, whose headquarters is nearby, that she “felt it in (her) body almost like in a film”.

“I felt a big blast, like a shock wave,” says Loris, who works at Le Puzzle bar, about twenty metres from the scene of the disaster. “Everything shook. The windows exploded, the manholes rose. The building collapsed, everyone started running. The building opposite also caught fire.”

What followed the explosion was chaos says Maïa, 13, who was taking part in a karate class next door to the blast: “The fire alarm went off in the building and the teacher asked us to leave the premises. We didn’t know what was going on, there was a bit of panic. On leaving, we saw the flames rising very high, around ten metres.”

Watch: Immediate aftermath of explosion

04:00 , Oliver O'Connell

Witness says design school frequented by American students

04:45 , Oliver O'Connell

The Times reports witness, Nathan Gomot, a waiter at a nearby cocktail bar saying: “It was an ordinary day. We were preparing for the [national] music festival this evening when we felt an enormous explosion. We looked out and saw debris all over the place. The façade of the building had fallen into the street and the block of flats opposite had also caught fire.”

He added that the design school was frequented by “Americans who come to learn about French fashion. We often serve them in this bar. When I see the state of the building, it is worrying.”

Paris police investigating possible gas leak behind blast

05:45 , Shweta Sharma

A Paris official has said a gas leak could be behind the powerful explosion in a building but other officials were more cautious.

A judicial official said a gas explosion was one of the possible causes under investigation.

The explosion at around 4:55pm local time at the Paris American Academy on Rue Saint-Jacques left four people in critical condition with dozens victims injured while two remain unaccounted for, according to French Interior Minister Gérard Darmanin.

The blast ignited a fire that sent smoke soaring over the French capital’s monuments and prompting an evacuation of other properties, authorities said.

The facade of the building in the 5th arrondissement collapsed, and officials said rescuers were searching for two people who might be trapped inside.

More than 20 injured after Paris explosion

06:30 , Shweta Sharma

At least 29 people have been injured – four of them seriously – after an explosion ripped through a busy street in central Paris.

The blast started fires and caused the collapse of the facade of a building housing a design school. Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said early indications were that the blast originated inside the building.

Paris police said four people were in a critical condition following the blast in the Latin Quarter, and rescue workers were searching for at least two missing people in the rubble.

‘Extremely violent’ explosion rips through central Paris street

Huge plumes of black smoke billow into Paris sky after gas explosion

07:00 , Shweta Sharma

Huge plumes of black smoke swelled in the air after an explosion in Paris yesterday.

Local French media reported that the blast, on rue Saint-Jacques in the fifth arrondissement, was caused by gas. Four people were left in critical condition after the blast.

Police spokesperson Loubna Atta said authorities have not confirmed if the fire was caused by a gas explosion.

The facade of one building fell into the street as a result of the blast, Reuters reported citing comments from a Paris police official.

Investigation opened into aggravated involuntary injury

07:45 , Shweta Sharma

The Paris prosecutor said an investigation was opened into aggravated involuntary injury and the probe would examine whether the explosion stemmed from a suspected violation of safety rules.

Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said investigators would seek to “determine whether or not there was failure to respect a rule or individual imprudence that led to the explosion”.

Paris explosion in pictures

08:30 , Oliver O'Connell

Rescuers search for person feared missing under rubble

14:40 , Oliver O'Connell

French rescue workers are searching for a person feared missing in the rubble after a powerful blast ripped through a street in central Paris, injuring more than 30 people – four of them critically.

The blast started fires and caused the collapse of the facade of a building housing a design school. At least 37 people were injured,

Some of the four critically injured people suffered severe burns, said health minister Francois Braun. One person who was feared missing has been found.

Jane Dalton has the latest.

Rescuers search for person feared missing under rubble after Paris blast injures 37