Rescue teams have recovered the bodies of six individuals who died in a building collapse following an explosion in the historic center of Athens, Greece, according to local authorities. Documents and belongings found with four of the victims – two men and two women – indicated they were United States citizens, as reported by Greek state broadcaster ERT and other local media. The other two victims were an elderly couple, a British man and a Greek woman, who resided on the building’s second floor. Two women were injured in an adjacent building, according to the fire department.
The explosion that caused the collapse of the small, two-storey building in the popular tourist district of Plaka on Friday is believed to have been triggered by a significant gas leak, according to Athens Mayor Haris Doukas. He stated that neighboring buildings were damaged and evacuated.
“The damage extends to the entire street as well as the street behind [the building],” Doukas said. “We are talking about an unimaginable catastrophe.” Two adjoining buildings that were severely damaged may need to be demolished, he added.
The Greek daily newspaper Kathimerini reported that the four tourists, who were scheduled to check out of their accommodation around 11:00 am (08:00 GMT), did not board their flight back to the US.
A group of residents in Plaka had alerted the municipality and the managers of the electricity and gas networks about potential risks of short circuits or gas leaks in the area a year prior. In a letter published by Kathimerini, the group requested a security exercise to identify any potential shortcomings in the emergency response system.
The citizen movement “We Remain Active” also stated on social media that a resident of the street where the explosion occurred had reported a smell of gas for several weeks and had warned the authorities. A Greek police spokeswoman confirmed to ERT that residents had made this report. However, the nature of the substance and its origin have not yet been determined. Plaka is located at the foot of the Acropolis, Greece’s most visited ancient monument.