Athens explosion kills six, including four American tourists

Four Americans were among six people killed when an explosion brought down a two-story building in the Plaka district of central Athens on Friday morning, and rescuers recovered the last of the bodies from the rubble on Saturday.

A State Department spokesperson confirmed to CBS News on Saturday that the four had died as a result of a gas explosion, and a spokesperson offered the department's condolences to their families in a statement to NBC News. Greek authorities did not immediately release the victims' identities, their ages or where in the United States they came from.

Greek investigators have not established what caused the blast. A build-up of gas in an enclosed space followed by ignition is among the leading scenarios being examined, Greek City Times reported, and the preliminary investigation is being conducted under the direction of the Athens First Instance Prosecutor's Office. Athens Mayor Haris Doukas said the explosion was believed to have been caused by a major gas leak.

Who was in the building

The four Americans were staying in a short-term rental apartment on the first floor of the building on Lysikratous Street. Documents and belongings recovered with the bodies, two men and two women, identified them as U.S. citizens, Greek state broadcaster ERT and other local media reported. They had been due to catch a flight from Athens airport at 3 p.m. on Friday and never showed up, a police source told Reuters.

Accounts of how the four were related differ. The New York Times reported a couple, their son and his girlfriend; Fox News described them as two couples. Greek City Times has reported that two of the dead were siblings of Albanian origin traveling with their partners, that one couple were newlyweds on honeymoon and that one of the women was pregnant.

I extend my deepest appreciation to the Greek first responders who worked tirelessly at the scene. The U.S. Embassy is providing consular assistance and support to the victims' families.

The two other people killed were an elderly British man and his Greek wife, who lived in the apartment on the second floor, ERT reported.

We are talking about an incredible disaster.

Two women were injured in an adjacent building on Lysikratous Street, the fire brigade said. All those rescued from the neighboring building were tourists, a resident, Andreas Martzaklis, told the Associated Press. Buildings next to the destroyed house were also damaged and evacuated, Doukas said.

The search of the rubble

The blast struck shortly after 7:30 a.m. on Friday, September 25. Rubble and shattered glass were thrown as far as three blocks away, Reuters reported, and nearby homes, shops and vehicles were damaged. Video from the scene showed debris across the street and parked cars crushed beneath falling masonry.

Firefighters and members of the 1st EMAK worked for more than a day before the last of the six bodies was brought out of the rubble. The search involved 30 firefighters and three dogs, along with cameras and sensors used to locate the bodies, fire brigade spokesman Vassilis Vathrakogiannis said in a televised briefing.

Before the bodies were found, crews were searching for an elderly couple who lived in one apartment and four tourists staying in another.

Two nearby buildings were left in a dangerous state, Doukas said, with inspections underway to determine whether they can remain standing or will also have to be demolished. Drone footage showed extensive damage to the buildings around the site, some of which appeared to be in a precarious state of balance.

Mechanical diggers were moving debris at the site on Saturday and thermal-imaging cameras were deployed, AFP reporters saw. The pastor of a nearby church said Sunday's service would be held outdoors because the building had been damaged in the blast.

What investigators are examining

Early indications point to the explosion having started on the second floor, in the apartment occupied by the elderly couple, according to Greek City Times. That unit is described as the only one in the building still connected to a natural gas supply, which served a kitchen, a fireplace and a burner. The first floor had a gas connection until 2021, removed at the owner's request.

Officials note that the shock-wave damage is concentrated at second-floor height, and that natural gas tends to collect higher in a space than LPG, which pools lower. Propane equipment in the couple's apartment is also being examined. Investigators stress that the observations must be confirmed by forensic examination before a leak can be established as the cause.

The fire department's spokesman said the fire service had received no complaint about a smell of gas before the explosion, which Greek City Times reported has become a key element of the investigation.

A warning from October 2025

Residents of Plaka warned the city and utility companies about the risk of gas leaks or short circuits about a year before the explosion that killed six people, according to a letter from the residents' association published by Kathimerini. The letter was dated October 5, 2025 and was addressed to the head of the fire service, with a copy to the Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, MEGA reported.

Reports of a gas smell

Greek media have reported that some residents of Lysikratous Street smelled gas in the weeks before the explosion and contacted the services responsible. One resident said inspections had been put off until November because of the tourist season, a claim reported by in.gr that has not been verified. A citizens' group said on social media that a resident of the street had alerted the authorities after smelling a possible gas leak.

Enaon EDA, the gas network operator, said after the explosion that emergency teams arrived immediately at Lysikratous Street and were carrying out checks with the competent authorities, and that the causes were still being established. The statement did not say whether there had been earlier complaints about the building or that part of the network.

The process of identifying the six victims was still underway on Sunday, Greek City Times reported. Families have been asked to provide genetic material for DNA comparison, work carried out with the Hellenic Police Criminal Investigations Directorate.

Mathaios Artavanis, the owner of the ground-floor apartment, told Kathimerini that he was not there when the blast happened and that he had tried afterward, without success, to contact the British and Greek couple who lived in the building.

Inspections due on Monday

Officers from the fire service's Arson Crimes Division, a team of 10, aim to finish collecting pipes, meters and other fittings from the site by Monday, Greek City Times reported. Urban-planning officials are expected to carry out the first inspection of the buildings next door the same day. The cause has not been officially confirmed and all scenarios remain open.

The destroyed house was an old masonry structure of high vulnerability, built of brick without a continuous load-bearing frame, according to Efthymis Lekkas, president of the Earthquake Planning and Protection Organisation. Plaka, which lies at the foot of the Acropolis, is one of the city's most visited neighborhoods; the monument drew 4.6 million visitors in 2025.