At least five people have died and five injured and an unknown number of people are missing after a three-storey building in the Netherlands collapsed on Saturday following explosions and a fire.
Loud bangs rocked the Mariahoeve neighbourhood in The Hague at about 0615 local time (0515 GMT) and images of the scene showed one segment, encompassing about five apartments, had been reduced to ashes and rubble.
The cause of the explosion is unclear, but police said they are looking for a car which was seen leaving the scene at high speed.
Mayor Jan van Zanen said investigators are looking into “all possibilities”. He added that there had been a small explosion, followed by a larger explosion.
The Dutch fire service said five people had died in the incident. A further four were taken to hospital, while one person was checked over by paramedics before being taken to a shelter.
The mayor said rescuers were no longer looking for survivors but for bodies, but could not specify how many people might still be unaccounted for. “The chance that living people will be found is very small,” he said.
Dutch media reported one of those admitted to hospital was a child. A line of ambulances could be seen waiting nearby in anticipation of more victims. A spokesperson for the local hospital said they were on standby.
Residents of the northeastern neighbourhood in The Hague heard a huge bang and screams before dawn. One woman told local media that she thought it was an earthquake.
Dutch authorities deployed an urban search and rescue team to the scene, with four dogs trained to find victims.
Prime minister Dick Schoof said he was shocked by the images of the disaster. "My thoughts go out to the victims, all other people involved and the emergency services who are now working on the scene," he said in a statement.
The mayor called it “an extremely heavy day”. Mr Van Zanen told a news conference: “I had expected a different Saturday.”
The Dutch royal family said: “Our thoughts are with those affected in The Hague after the explosion and fire this morning.”
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima added they send their wishes to those “who are afraid of the fate of their loved ones”.
