Six dead after Athens building collapse following suspected gas leak in Plaka

Search operation in Plaka

Emergency services in Athens concluded a search operation lasting more than 24 hours after a two-story building on Lysikratous Street collapsed on Friday, 25 September. The blast occurred at approximately 07:30 local time (04:30 GMT) in the Plaka neighbourhood, situated near the Acropolis and the Temple of Olympian Zeus. Rescue teams retrieved the body of a female victim overnight, followed by three additional bodies on Saturday morning, before locating the final two missing occupants later that afternoon. Thirty firefighters deployed to the site alongside six vehicles, including two specialized rescue units, and three search dogs.

Identification of the victims

Greek authorities confirmed that all six people missing in the collapse died in the incident. Four of the victims were American tourists staying in a short-term rental apartment on the building's first floor. The group consisted of two couples, including Ian Alexander Kirkpatrick, 37, and Florida Hoxha, who had recently married and was three months pregnant, alongside Florida's brother Florin Hoxha and his wife Erisa Cani. The four visitors were scheduled to check out at 11:00 and board a return flight to the United States at 15:30 on Friday, but did not arrive at the airport. The remaining two victims were an elderly couple residing on the second floor, identified as a British man and his Greek wife.

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Structural destruction and evacuations

The force of the explosion shattered windows and scattered debris up to three blocks away, damaging adjacent buildings, local shops, and parked vehicles. Two neighbouring properties suffered severe structural damage, prompting emergency personnel to order immediate evacuations while engineers evaluate whether the structures can remain standing. Fire crews assisted two women from an adjacent building who required hospitalization, while another person received treatment for minor injuries caused by flying glass. The disruption also forced a local church to plan its Sunday service outdoors.

Police spokeswoman Constantina Dimoglidou spoke to public broadcaster ERT about the conditions encountered by the search teams during the operation.

“The rescue operation is not easy because the largest part of the building collapsed. There is a risk to neighbouring houses, which were evacuated for safety reasons.”

Investigation into suspected gas leak

Investigators from the Fire Service's Arson and Fire Crimes Division remain on the scene to establish the source of the blast. Preliminary assessments by police and fire officials point to a natural gas leak as the most probable cause, noting that a gas installation was present on the second floor. Several neighbourhood residents and passersby reported detecting a strong odour of gas in the street shortly before the deflagration took place. Mathaios Artavanis, who owned the ground-floor property and was away during the blast, stated that he attempted unsuccessfully to contact the second-floor residents following the incident.

Athens Mayor Haris Doukas visited Lysikratous Street to assess the impact on local municipal infrastructure.

“We are talking about an unimaginable disaster.”