Jersey explosion – live: Three dead and several missing after St Helier flat fire
Police say more people may have been killed after residents reported smelling gas
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Your support makes all the difference.Three people have died and more are missing, authorities say, after an explosion and fire at a block of flats in Jersey.
“Around a dozen” residents are missing following a blast in St Helier, according to Robin Smith, the chief officer of the States of Jersey Police.
One person is still in hospital but not in a serious condition, while two people who were being treated earlier had been released, he said.
Fire crews were called last night after residents around the Haut du Mont flats reported smelling gas.
Video footage and photographs showed smoke billowing above the blaze in the early hours.
Mr Smith described the scene as devastating, warning there could be more fatalities.
He said: “We have a three-storey building that has completely collapsed - described from a demolition point of view as a pancake that has dropped almost straight down.”
Emergency services plan to continue their search-and-rescue operation at the scene in Pier Road all night.
Chief minister Kristina Moore updated the death toll to three, saying it was an “unimaginable tragedy”.
Number of people missing may change, say police
When asked how many people were thought to be missing, police chief Robin Smith said: “Given the destruction of the building, it is hard to properly assess the numbers.
“We are looking in the region of around a dozen, currently.
“That number could fluctuate, but that’s the number we’re operating to.”
When asked whether more deaths were likely, Mr Smith said: “I wouldn’t want to speculate on those sorts of things... but there has to be a recognition that we could have more fatalities.”
Residents told to avoid casualty unit
Emergency services have told Jersey residents to avoid using A&E apart from in an emergency, and police have advised people to avoid the area of the blast, which has been cordoned off.
Officers said the fire had been extinguished, but emergency services were still carrying out “significant work” at the scene.
Gas supplier Island Energy said it was working with the fire service to “understand exactly what has happened”.
Landlord says it’s working with emergency services
The building where the explosion happened is managed by Andium Homes, and their chief executive is “working very hard to look after” those affected, the police chief said.
Robin Smith vowed police would investigate “whether or not there was a safety issue” over gas supplies.
Andium Homes, a state-owned but independent company that lets out thousands of properties on the island, said on Twitter: “We are working with the emergency services responding to the incident at Haut du Mont this morning.
“Our focus at the moment is on supporting our residents on that estate. Our thoughts are with them and their families at this time.”
Blast shook nearby homes
A resident who lives across the bay from the block of flats hit by the explosion said his bedroom was shaken by the blast.
Daniel Hunt, a 19-year-old data administrator, said the explosion woke him at around 4am.
“My bedroom was shaken from the explosion with the windows rattling, which was all very unnerving,” he told PA.
“I went outside to take a look... I could see what looked like police and firefighters shining torches through windows of surrounding buildings – I assume as they were evacuating the surrounding area.
“The building (was) up in flames with smoke pouring out of the windows.
“To have this happen so close and so early in the morning – you don’t know what to think.”
Watch: Footage reveals devastating impact
Footage reveals devastating impact of fatal Jersey explosion
At least one person has been killed and several remain missing after a block of flats exploded on Jersey island. Footage shot in the aftermath reveals the devastating impact of the blast which rocked the island early on Saturday, 10 December. Emergency services continued to carry out a search and rescue operation later that morning at the scene on Pier Road. Authorities said it was difficult to assess the number of people missing due to the level of destruction. At least two people have been admitted to hospital. Click here to sign up for our newsletters.
Police fear more deaths after explosion kills one person
An explosion and fire in an apartment building on the island of Jersey has killed one person and left several missing, police say.
Robin Smith, the chief officer of the States of Jersey Police, said that “around a dozen” residents were missing following the blast in the town of St Helier.
Mr Smith said a three-story building had completely collapsed and there was damage to a nearby building.
He described the scene as “devastating” and warned there could be more fatalities.
Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands, is a self-governing dependency of the UK, located off the coast of northern France in the Channel.
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