Three people have been killed and around a dozen remain missing after an explosion at an apartment building on the island of Jersey, off the coast of northern France.
"We now have, I regret to say, three fatalities," Robin Smith, chief officer of the States of Jersey Police, told a news conference.
The explosion occurred early on Saturday morning just before 0400 GMT and the fire has since been extinguished.
Mr Smith confirmed fire services had been called to the property on Friday before the explosion after residents had reported the smell of gas.
He did not comment on the cause of the explosion, and said that would be subject to investigation.
Mr Smith said a three-storey building, located near the harbour in the island's capital St Helier, had collapsed and a search and rescue operation had begun to find around a dozen other people unaccounted-for.
He said 20 to 30 people had been evacuated and that there were two "walking wounded" receiving hospital treatment.
Asked about the possibility of more fatalities he said: "There has to be a recognition that we could have more fatalities."
Police have opened up a support hotline for those seeking information about family members involved in the incident.
Locals have been told to avoid the area by police while emergency services continue to carry out "significant work".
Jersey Police later announced via Twitter that a hazardous area response team were on site, to be later joined by an urban search and rescue teams from the mainland and Isle of Wight.
Jersey is a British Crown Dependency with a resident population of just over 100,000 people.
"It's a huge shock to everyone this morning but in the first instance our condolences go to the families who are affected," said Kristina Moore, Chief Minister of Jersey.
"We're all thinking and praying for those who are worried about their loved ones this morning."
Reuters/ABC
