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| Paris explosion: Seven critically injured after blast | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Watch: Footage from the scene shows thick black smoke coming from a destroyed building | |
| Watch: Footage from the scene shows thick black smoke coming from a destroyed building | |
| At least 16 people have been injured, seven of them seriously, after a large explosion in central Paris. | |
| The blast took place in a building next to the Val de Grâce church in Rue Saint-Jacques in the fifth arrondissement of the French capital. | |
| A building next to the church was engulfed by flames and much of it appears to have collapsed. | |
| According to witnesses quoted by French media, there was a strong smell of gas before the blast. | |
| Police, doctors and more than 200 firefighters are at the scene. | |
| The mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, is also there, while Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has warned people to avoid the area. | |
| The area where the explosion took place runs south from the Latin quarter on Paris's left bank and is known for its student population. | |
| A student at Ecole des Mines on Boulevard Saint-Michel told Le Parisien newspaper: "I was in front of the Val de Grâce, I heard a huge boom and I saw a ball of fire 20 or 30m high. And the building collapsed with a huge noise. I smelled gas, but took several minutes to come to my senses." | |
| Related Topics | Related Topics |
| Paris | Paris |