Paris explosion: Body found in rubble of bakery brings death toll to four

Two firefighters and Spanish tourist also killed following suspected gas leak

Rescue workers have discovered the body of a woman in the rubble of the Paris bakery where an explosion took place on Saturday morning, bringing the death toll to four.

Two firefighters and a tourist from Spain were killed in the blast on Rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondissement, believed to have been caused by a gas leak.

Dozens of other people were injured in the explosion and the French authorities say nine of them remain in a critical condition in hospital.

One woman was declared missing on Saturday, but it is not yet known whether the body found today is that of the same person.

Paris fire department spokesman Eric Moulin told reporters on Sunday around 30 firefighters were still at the site searching for other potential victims, amid a mountain of debris around the Hubert bakery at 6 Rue de Trevise.

He also named the two firefighters who lost their lives as 28-year-old Simon Cartannaz and 27-year-old Nathanaël Josselin.

According to city officials, 12 neighbouring buildings damaged by the blast were all evacuated. Temporary accommodations has been provided for about 40 residents while dozens of others have been housed by family and friends.

A gas leak was reported at the bakery early Saturday and firefighters had arrived to inspect the building before the explosion occurred around 9am.

Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz has said the blast appeared to be “accidental,” but an investigation to find the precise cause was still underway.

“We are at the beginning of the investigation, everything will be made to establish the exact origin of the explosion as soon as possible.”

Flowers laid outside Paris fire station in the 9th arrondissement (AFP/Getty) (AFP/Getty Images)

Spanish foreign minister Josep Borrell revealed a Spanish woman was also killed in the blast, and the El Pais newspaper reported the woman was a 38-year-old tourist who had been staying with her husband and three children in a hotel near the bakery.

Pedro Goncalves, an employee at the Hotel Mercure opposite the bakery, said he saw firefighters enter the bakery in the morning but he and his co-workers “thought maybe it’s a joke, a false alarm” and they went back to work. About an hour later, he said a blast rocked the surrounding streets.

“In the middle of nothing, I heard one big explosion and then a lot of pressure came at me [and] a lot of black smoke and glass,” he said. “And I had just enough time to get down and cover myself and protect my head.”

Mr Goncalves said he “felt a lot of things fall on me” and that he was struck by shattered glass. He had a few cuts on his head, and spots of blood on his sweater and shirt. “Thank God I’m OK,” he said, saying that the blast was so powerful that he heard whistling in his ears in the aftermath.

The hotel worker said that he ran for the exit and then went to check on the hotel’s clients, adding that some of them had head injuries and were bleeding. Mr Goncalves said that the hotel was “destroyed” in the blast.

Authorities said around 200 firefighters and police were involved in the operation in the 9th arrondissement.

Additional reporting by agencies