Blast rips through apartment complex, nine missing
At least nine people are reported missing and seven are injured in an explosion that ripped through an apartment building in Canada.
The residential building in Woodstock, 130 km from Toronto, erupted in flames shortly after the blast that was reported to have occurred at 8:30 am (local time).
Residents living on the streets around the building were being evacuated from the area on Sunday evening, Woodstock police spokesman Sgt. Marvin Massecar told Vancouver Sun.
"I live about three blocks north of the building, and I heard it. It was loud, and my house shook," he said.
About 30 firefighters were called in to fight the fire and there were reports that a firefighter was injured by falling debris.
The building has about 60 apartments.
"It's a mess," Massecar said about the scene. "The middle of the building is completely missing. There's nothing there. Either end is standing, but you can see right through the middle".
Massecar said he could not confirm the cause of the incident but that "investigations were on 100 per cent".
Of the seven people being treated for injuries, six were released from the Woodstock General Hospital later on Sunday, the hospital's communications director Vicki Davey told agencies.
Several homes across from the building were evacuated as a precaution, police said.
