UPDATE: Six dead, two missing after gas blast in Polish town

Six people were reported dead and two others unaccounted for after an apparent gas blast ripped through a residential building in the southern Polish resort town of Szczyrk on Wednesday evening.  

Firefighters and rescue workers at the site of the blast in Szczyrk, southern Poland, on Thursday morning.

Photo: PAP/Andrzej Grygiel

Dozens of firefighters were deployed after the building was blown apart by the explosion and erupted in flames at around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, public broadcaster Polish Radio’s IAR news agency reported.

Rescue workers also arrived on the scene to sift through the debris in search of survivors.

By Thursday morning, rescue teams had recovered six bodies, broadcaster TVP Info reported.

Two children were among the dead, according to officials.

Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki was being kept informed about the rescue effort, officials said.

Up to 100 firemen, 50 police officers and other emergency service workers were on the scene, according to news reports.

Some 100 firefighters, 50 police officers and other emergency service workers were on the scene, according to news reports.

Morawiecki wrote on Twitter: "All available resources are being used to save lives after the gas explosion in Szczyrk … My thoughts go out to the families of the victims; everyone will be provided with help."

Wszystkie możliwe siły są zaangażowane w ratowanie ludzkiego życia i zdrowia po wybuchu gazu w Szczyrku. Jestem w stałym kontakcie z Wojewodą Wieczorkiem, który jest obecny na miejscu. Moje myśli są z bliskimi poszkodowanych, wszystkim zostanie udzielona niezbędna pomoc.

— Mateusz Morawiecki (@MorawieckiM) December 4, 2019

(gs/pk)

Source: IAR, TVP Info, TVN24

This is a developing story; check back for updates.