Four of the six bodies found in the rubble of the building on rue de Tivoli in Marseille, after the explosion of the building on Sunday, have been identified, announced the public prosecutor of Marseille, Dominique Laurens, on Tuesday April 11. A 74-year-old man and his wife of the same age are among the victims, along with two women aged 65 and 88.
While the rescue continues, three days after the tragedy, the hope of finding survivors is dwindling, after the discovery in the rubble of six lifeless bodies, out of the total of eight people wanted. Several hundred cubic meters of rubble have already been cleared, from 17 rue de Tivoli but also from number 15, which collapsed a few hours after the explosion on Sunday, after the complete evacuation of the building. The fire, which prevented the use of canine equipment because of the very high heat, is under control, and investigators are still exploring the hypothesis of an explosion due to gas.
Two people are still apparently missing
The identification cells established matches using DNA, hair and dental elements, with the bodies extracted from the rubble. Two people are still apparently missing under the rubble, said the public prosecutor, Dominique Laurens.
"The research is becoming more and more perilous, she said, the rubble continues to be excavated but by hand [due] to a very significant danger to the stability of the building at 19", which threatens to collapse.
"We are working on the hypothesis of a gas explosion," said the magistrate, but no conclusion could yet be drawn on the cause of the violent explosion which blew up the building on 17 Tivoli Street. Only the apartments on the ground floor and first floor were equipped with gas, according to the investigators.
The explosion of the building, "extremely violent" according to the Marseille public prosecutor, occurred at 12:46 a.m. on the night of Saturday to Sunday, as evidenced by surveillance cameras. 17, rue de Tivoli, a building housing five apartments in a rather residential area of the city center, was completely destroyed.
