Netherlands explosion kills at least 1, destroys block of flats in The Hague

A woman died, several people were injured and an unknown number were missing after a building in The Hague collapsed on Saturday following explosions and a fire, the mayor of the Dutch city said.

Jan van Zanen told a press conference those missing were believed to be buried under debris. “The chance that living people will be found is very small,” he said.

The cause of the disaster, which took place shortly after 6am local time (0500 GMT), was not known. Van Zanen said that there had been a small explosion, followed by a larger explosion.

Police called on people who had seen a car speeding away from the scene, or people who had video of it, to contact them.

Van Zanen said investigators are looking into “all possibilities”.

Emergency authorities said four people were rescued from the rubble and taken to the hospital. The mayor said rescuers were no longer looking for survivors but for eventual bodies, but could not specify how many people might still be unaccounted for.