2 firefighters killed in Paris bakery blast; dozens injured

French authorities said two firefighters were killed and 47 people injured in a powerful explosion and fire apparently caused by a gas leak at a Paris bakery Saturday that blasted out windows and overturned cars.

Firefighters pulled injured victims from windows and evacuated residents as smoke billowed over Rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondissement of north-central Paris.

The Paris prosecutor's office said that two firefighters have been killed in the bakery blast, correcting the overall figure of four dead given earlier by France's interior minister.

Authorities said 10 people were in critical condition and 37 others less seriously injured.

Interior Minister Christophe Castaner told reporters at the scene "unfortunately the human toll is particularly serious."
He told The Associated Press that "the judicial police have started investigating, the scientific police as well. The origin of the explosion seems accidental. We are at the beginning of the investigation everything will be made to establish the exact origin of the explosion as soon as possible."
"And I had just enough time to get down and cover myself and protect my head."