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At least three people were killed, four injured and an unknown number of people missing after a three-story building in the Netherlands collapsed on Saturday following explosions and a fire.
Loud bangs rocked the Mariahoeve neighborhood of The Hague around 06:15 local time (05:15 GMT), and pictures of the scene showed one segment, comprising around five apartments, reduced to ash and rubble.
The cause of the explosion is unclear, but police said they are looking for a car that was seen leaving the scene at a high rate of speed.
Mayor Jan van Zanen said investigators were looking into “all possibilities.” He added that there was a smaller explosion and then a larger explosion.
Emergency authorities said four people were rescued from the rubble and taken to hospital. The mayor said that rescuers are no longer looking for survivors, but for bodies, but he could not specify how many people would still be missing. “The chances of finding people alive are very low,” he said.
Dutch media reports that one of those admitted to the hospital is a child. A line of ambulances could be seen waiting nearby in anticipation of more victims. A local hospital spokesman said they were on standby.
Residents of the northeast quarter of The Hague heard a big bang and screams before dawn. One woman told local media that she thought it was an earthquake.
Dutch authorities deployed an urban search and rescue team to the scene, with four dogs trained to find victims.
Prime Minister Dick Schoof said he was shocked by the images of the disaster. “My thoughts go out to the victims, all the other people involved and the emergency services now working at the scene,” he said in a statement.
The mayor called it an “extremely difficult day”. Van Zanen said at the press conference: “I expected a different Saturday.”
The Dutch royal family said: “Our thoughts are with those affected in The Hague following this morning’s explosion and fire.”
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima added that they send their wishes to those “who fear the fate of their loved ones.”