A third body was found early on Saturday afternoon in the building that collapsed in Plaka on Friday morning following an explosion possibly caused by natural gas.
The body of another man had been recovered a short time earlier, while shortly after 2am rescue crews from Greece’s Disaster Response Special Unit (EMAK) had pulled the body of a woman from the rubble.
Initial reports indicated that the latest victim was a woman. However, Fire Service spokesperson Efi Papamvramopoulou later confirmed that the victim was a man. According to available information, he was a 77-year-old British national.
“A new person, a man, has been located and firefighters are currently in the process of recovering him. It should be recalled that at 1.30am today a woman was located and recovered and taken to hospital, while when we arrived yesterday, two women were rescued alive from an adjacent building. We will provide further information as it becomes available,” Papamvramopoulou said.
A second woman’s body has been found in the rubble of the building on Lysikratous Street in Plaka, which collapsed on the morning of Friday, 25 September 2026, following a powerful explosion.
The first woman’s body was recovered from the first floor of the building and according to information available so far, she had been staying there with three other people.
The four were two American couples visiting Athens who had rented a short-term apartment in the building.
Rescue operation continues through the rubble
Search and rescue operations remain in full swing, with firefighters gradually removing debris from the collapsed building.
Thirty firefighters with six vehicles are working at the scene, including two specialist rescue vehicles from Greece’s 1st EMAK disaster response unit. Three search-and-rescue dogs have also been deployed.
Rescuers are using specialised listening equipment to detect sounds beneath the rubble, as well as cameras to search for possible survivors.
Debris removal and other noisy operations are periodically halted to allow rescue teams to listen for signs of people trapped beneath the wreckage.
Five people still missing
Authorities are searching for another five people believed to have been staying in the building.
They are an elderly couple who lived on the second floor and three American tourists who had rented the first-floor apartment.
The four Americans are reported to be two couples aged between 30 and 40 who were holidaying in Greece. The apartment had been booked through a short-term rental platform under the name of Ian, aged 37.
During the search, rescuers found a woman’s bag containing a rental agreement believed to belong to one of the tourists, as well as US passports belonging to Ian and Florida. Another bag containing the apartment rental agreement was also found, strengthening suspicions that the four tourists were inside when the explosion occurred.
The same sources said the tourists had booked a Delta flight departing at 15:30 on Friday to return to the United States but did not arrive for the flight.
The elderly couple believed to have lived on the second floor were reported to be a 78-year-old woman born in Athens and a 77-year-old British man.
Police tried to contact them by telephone but received no response.
Two women rescued from neighbouring building
When firefighters arrived on Friday morning, they rescued two women from a neighbouring building on Lysikratous Street.
Both were taken by ambulance to Georgios Gennimatas Hospital for medical treatment. Another person suffered minor injuries from flying debris.
The explosion occurred shortly after 07:30 on Friday, 25 September, causing extensive damage to neighbouring buildings and parked vehicles.
Police and ambulances remain at the scene, while two additional ambulances are on standby.
A specialist fire investigation team is also examining the cause of the explosion.
Gas leak among possible causes
Investigators are examining whether a gas leak caused the blast, although the precise cause has not yet been established.
Athens Mayor Haris Doukas, who visited the scene, described the rescue operation as highly complex.
“People are missing. It is an extremely complex situation and the search is in full progress,” he said.
Doukas said specialist fire service personnel and search dogs were working inside the site, while drones were being used to provide an overview of the destruction.
He described the explosion as extremely powerful and the damage as severe.
Asked about its cause, Doukas said he understood that it had been caused by gas, adding that the force of the explosion suggested something had gone seriously wrong.
Authorities, however, continue to investigate the cause, with a possible gas leak among the scenarios being examined. According to information from the authorities, natural gas installations were located on the building’s second floor.
Building had two residential floors
The building at 15 Lysikratous Street consisted of a ground floor and two upper floors.
The ground floor was unoccupied at the time of the explosion. The first-floor apartment was being used for short-term rentals, while the elderly couple lived on the second floor.
The building’s ground-floor owner, Matthaios Artavanis, said he learnt about the explosion and collapse from news reports.
“I immediately called the woman next door to find out what had happened. I saw from the photographs that it was my building,” he said.
Artavanis said he had repeatedly tried to contact the elderly couple without success and added that the man had mobility problems.
Another resident, Mr Martsakis, said there was no natural gas, propane or LPG at his own property nearby. He said he was drinking coffee about 50 metres away when he heard the explosion and immediately went outside.
Residents described the sound of the blast as deafening.
Emergency crews, police and municipal teams remain at the scene as the search for the five missing people continues.
Read more:
Blast brings down building in central Athens, three women freed
