At least one person was killed and 25 were wounded after an explosion at a residential building in the eastern German town of Blankenburg on Friday, local police said.
The cause of the explosion, which was reported at 8.55am local time, is not yet known.
#Update #Blankenburg1312
— Polizei Magdeburg (@Polizei_MD) December 13, 2019
Bei der #Explosion wurden 25 Bewohner zum Teil schwer verletzt. Im Polizeirevier Harz in Halberstadt wurde ein Einsatzstab eingerichtet. Gegenwärtig werden der Unglücksbereich weiträumig abgesperrt und weitere Bewohner evakuiert. pic.twitter.com/uHxTUUSwUi
Emergency services were rushed to the scene on Friday morning to evacuate and tend to residents of the building, which was cordoned off.
Residents included children at a nearby kindergarten, the police tweeted, adding that none of them were hurt.
They said that several people were severely injured and everyone who should have been in the building was accounted for.