At least three killed and 13 injured in explosion at Romania apartment block

A powerful explosion tore through two stories of an apartment building in Romania's capital on Friday, killing three people and injuring at least 13 others, authorities said.

The explosion affected the fifth and sixth floors of the eight-story building, according to the capital’s Inspectorate for Emergency Situations.

"At least 500 people will no longer be able to enter their own homes. The City Hall, all the district mayors, the prefecture, all these structures have been mobilised. We have a solid plan that we are implementing as we speak," said Bucharest's interim mayor, Stelian Bujduveanu.

More than a dozen emergency vehicles, including 11 fire engines and four mobile intensive care units, were dispatched to the scene of the blast on Calea Rahovei in Bucharest’s Sector 5.

The cause of the fatal blast was not immediately clear, but authorities said the gas supply had been shut off in the area as a safety precaution.

Romania’s Ministry of Health said victims had been reported with polytrauma and burns.

The ministry later said one person was found dead under a concrete slab on the building’s sixth floor. At least 13 people were transported to hospitals in the capital.

All residents were evacuated from the building and rescuers carried out search operations to identify anyone trapped.

Students and teachers at a nearby school were also evacuated as a precaution, Bucharest's School Inspectorate said.

Video footage shared by emergency authorities showed the facades of corner apartments on two stories badly mangled by the blast, which appeared to have also blown out windows in neighbouring apartments. Rubble was strewn across the street below.

Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan said that the block affected by the explosion will have to be knocked down.

"According to the initial estimates of the State Construction Inspectorate, this block will most likely not be reconstructed and will have to be demolished," the prime minister said.