ON FRIDAY NIGHT, THE PARIS, FRANCE, FIRE BRIGADE was called to a fire at a multi-story parking garage. The alarm came in at 5:00 pm and when they arrived on scene all five floors of the garage were filled with burning vehicles.
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Le Parisien photo
As they were attacking the fire, one of the cars suddenly exploded causing a major structural collapse in the area. One witness, a badged member of the press, said that he heard two or three detonations.
The concrete and steel rubble fell on and trapped two firefighters. The massive weight of the rubble prolonged the efforts to rescue them. One of them died at the scene and the other died later at the hospital.
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The Le Parisien photographer caught the blast as it happened
The fire was attended by 200 firefighters and 50 trucks. It was knocked down and under control by 7:00 pm, but at midnight it still had hot spots and heavy smoke.
The incident has been turned over to the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Police.
sources: AFP, Le Monde and Le Parisien
LCI News has posted a good VIDEO.
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AFP photo
Update: The two casualties have been identified as Caporal-Chef Matthieu Mercier, age 23, and Aaporal Ludovic Martin, age 21.
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