Paris bakery blast which killed four caused by gas pipe break

Inquiry reveals the gas pipe broke due to ground subsidence caused by a water leak

A view of the debris and car wreckage following the explosion at a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in central Paris. AFP / Carl LABROSSE

French investigators have confirmed that a powerful explosion at a bakery in Paris that killed four people and injured dozens almost a year ago was caused by a gas pipe break.

The blast in January devastated a street in north central Paris, damaging dozens of neighbouring buildings and forced many families to find temporary accommodation for months.

Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said in a statement on Monday that the gas pipe broke due to ground subsidence caused by a water leak several years before.

Judicial experts have found that Paris street maintenance services and a private company in charge of the work failed to properly address the subsidence in 2016.

Firefighters were on the scene to investigate a suspected gas leak at the bakery when the explosion occurred.

Two firefighters died in the blast.