A two-story building collapsed early Sunday in Saviano, a town in the southern Italian province of Naples, killing two young siblings and trapping their mother and another woman in the rubble, firefighters reported.
The Italian fire service stated on their official Telegram channel that a gas explosion likely caused the collapse.
Rescue workers recovered the bodies of a 6-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl from the debris. Their 2-year-old brother was found alive, while their father was hospitalized in Naples with serious injuries.
Luca Cari, a spokesman for the firefighters, said rescuers were proceeding cautiously to avoid further collapses as they searched for the two trapped women.
Saviano Mayor Vincenzo Simonelli, present at the scene, described the building as “crumpled up on itself” and called the situation “very serious.”
According to media reports, a gas leak may have triggered an explosion on the second floor, causing it to collapse onto the lower floor.
Firefighters continue their efforts to locate and rescue the trapped women as investigations into the cause of the collapse are ongoing.
Source: apnews.com
