Italy: At least 3 dead after gas explosion in Sicily, drone video shows scale of devastation

Multiple residential buildings collapsed, killing at least three people in Sicily, Italy in a gas explosion on Saturday (December 12). Six people are reportedly missing as search and rescue work is underway. 

Giuseppe Merendino, the head of firefighters in the province of Agrigento said that two people were found alive as and rescuers with sniffer dogs are trying to locate the missing. 

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Local authorities have started the investigation to ascertain the actual cause, however, the initial probe suggested that the explosion was likely caused by a gas leak. 

Vigili del Fuoco, which is Italy's institutional agency for fire and rescue service, released pictures and videos to show the scale of damage. 

Watch drone video here:

"The gas probably found a cavity in which to accumulate. This pocket of gas would then have found an accidental trigger: a car, an elevator, an electrical appliance, Merendino told the Rainews24 TV channel. 

Commenting on the rescue operation, Merendino as quoted in the newspaper Giornale di Sicilia said that everything is "extremely difficult" because the buildings have collapsed on top of each other and the rubble is overlapping.
 
"We have to look for spaces between the rubble to recover the missing. Now, unfortunately, the dogs have given us no further indication and we have to search by other methods," he added.