A gas tank exploded behind a bakery in a south German village Friday, killing at least one person and sparking a frantic search for others feared buried under the rubble.
Police said the explosion flattened the bakery in the village of Lehrberg, near Nuremberg, set fire to a nearby warehouse and damaged about six adjoining houses.
Nine people were taken to the hospital with injuries from the blast, including two who were seriously hurt, police said. The Bavarian Red Cross said up to 12 people may have been trapped in the rubble.
The explosion occurred just as a Red Cross emergency team arrived at the scene to deal with a leak from the gas tank in the yard behind the bakery. One emergency worker was among the injured.
The Red Cross brought in sniffer dogs to help scores of emergency workers search for other victims.