A 63-year-old woman was found in cardiac arrest following a violent explosion in an apartment on rue Cordouan, in the city center of La Rochelle. Significant emergency resources were deployed in the street.
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Around 9 p.m., this Monday, November 25, a violent explosion occurred at 12 rue Cordouan, in the city center of La Rochelle, killing a 63-year-old resident and mobilizing significant emergency resources.
The explosion occurred in a three-story building, without the emergency services and law enforcement deployed on site being able, Monday evening, to determine the exact level of the explosion.
The emergency services did not “found no one on the first and second floor”. But, at “third floor”they have “discovered a 63-year-old woman in cardiovascular arrest”, indicated Pierre-Louis Sire, secretary general of the Charente-Maritime prefecture. She was treated on the spot by emergency services who tried to resuscitate her without success.
According to witnesses, the explosion could have occurred on the ground floor of the building where a laundromat is located. But according to the first elements of the investigation, he was “still too early to say” this Monday evening. “There must be further investigations by the firefighters to say where the explosion occurred”continued Pierre-Louis Sire.
“Given the appearance of the explosion, there are several hypotheses that will need to be refined”he continued.
According to the first available information, on Monday evening, around twenty people had to be evacuated from neighboring buildings in order to “to avoid, in the event of a spread, that there are other victims”.
According to La Rochelle town hall, around ten residents of neighboring buildings will be relocated, even if, fortunately, the fire did not spread to neighboring homes. “The firefighters are working hard to bring the fire under control. It’s pretty much on track, even if the intervention is still underway” (around 9:30 p.m., Editor’s note).
According to firefighters, the building did not completely engulf in flames. “We have a roof fire that is being extinguished, explains the fire commander. We want to avoid any spread.”
Forty-five firefighters, around ten police officers and two gendarmerie crews were mobilized at the height of the intervention.
