One person was killed and eight were injured, one critically, in a gas explosion at a packaging workshop in Istanbul on Saturday, local media reported. "It's not certain whether one person remains under the debris. Rescue teams are searching meticulously," Istanbul police chief Selami Altinok told reporters at the blast site. Rescue teams dug a body from the debris some seven hours after the explosion, media reports said.
The accident was caused by either a gas leak or an exploding gas canister, Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu said, ruling out the possibility of a terrorist attack. On Friday, one person died and 36 were injured in a gas explosion at a bakery in the city of Denizli, south-western Turkey, the disaster management agency said.