Blast rips through Paris' Latin Quarter

ABDULMONAM EASSA/ AFP

A blast ripped through a street in the busy Latin Quarter of central Paris on Wednesday, causing the facade of a design school popular with foreign students to collapse, blowing out windows and starting a huge blaze.

At least 16 people were injured, including seven who are in a critical condition.

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

But the 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.

Television images showed rubble from the Paris American Academy strewn across the Rue Saint-Jacques and smoke rising from at least two nearby buildings that were ablaze.

More than 200 firefighters were involved in the emergency response. Paris police chief Laurent Nunez said later that the blaze had been brought under control.

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 area is usually packed with tourists and foreign students in the early summer.

More from International

Coming Up on Dubai Eye

  • Motor Mania

    10:00am - Noon

  • The Best of Dubai Eye 103.8

    Noon - 4:00pm

    Hear the highlights from the week gone by on Dubai Eye 103.8. Listen again to the best interviews, advice and the top stories that has gripped our conversation this week.

BUSINESS BREAKFAST LATEST

On Dubai Eye

  • Is There Sufficient House Supply In UAE

    Dubai’s current population is more than double compared to almost twenty years ago, which now stands at 3.7 million. Lots of families are also moving to the UAE now. So what does it mean for the property market?

  • Noon's First Female Delivery Driver

    Glory Ehirim Nkiruka is Noon’s first ever female delivery driver. In her first ever interview, she explained why she loves her job, despite the heat!