Rescuers have stepped up a desperate search for a woman feared trapped beneath a pile of rubble after a house was destroyed by an explosion.
The explosion occurred on the second level of the property on Waikanda Crescent, in Whalan, in Sydney’s west, and Fire and Rescue (FRNSW) was called just before 1pm on Saturday.
Firefighters heard “bangs” and noises coming from beneath the rubble, which they believe is a sign that the woman is still alive.
On Sunday, police announced that the search area is now a crime scene and officers have closed the street.
Rescuers have stepped up a desperate search for a woman feared trapped under a pile of rubble after a house was destroyed by an explosion (pictured).
Since then, there has been an increased police presence in the area, with dozens of officers arriving at the scene around 7.30am.
NSW Fire and Rescue Superintendent Ross Genders said rescuers have so far been unable to locate the woman, who was understood to be on the second floor of the house, when the explosion occurred.
“We have a generalized area where we are looking for them and that is based on the design of the building,” Superintendent Géneros told the Daily Telegraph.
“So we know it’s the back of the building where most of the debris has collapsed.”
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Fire and Rescue NSW and NSW Police for further comment.
Early indications suggest that the explosion may have been the result of a gas leak, although the actual cause of the explosion has not yet been officially determined.
Rescuers (pictured) are still searching for the woman, after firefighters heard “bangs” and noises coming from beneath the rubble of the collapsed building, which they believe is a sign the woman is alive.
Police (officers pictured at the scene Saturday) announced that the search area is now a crime scene and officers have closed the street.
The explosion hit the second level of the house causing the house to collapse (in the photo)
Paramedics treated five people who suffered injuries after the building collapsed.
Two women were rescued from the rubble of the collapsed structure: a woman in her 60s and another woman in her 70s who uses a wheelchair.
Another 12 people from surrounding houses were evacuated.
Emergency services braved heavy rain and cold and worked through the night in a bid to find the woman trapped beneath the rubble.
Search and rescue efforts were hampered Saturday afternoon due to bad weather.
The building has been reduced to a pile of rubble and the sound of the explosion was heard several kilometers away.
Police closed access to the street and an increased police presence has been observed in the area since 7.30am on Sunday (pictured, police officers at the scene on Saturday)
Emergency services (pictured) braved heavy rain and cold and worked through the night in a bid to find the woman trapped beneath the rubble.
On Saturday, emergency services responded to a call about an explosion that had “destroyed” one level of the unit.
Windows were shattered by the explosion and witnesses could be heard screaming.
A Fire and Rescue NSW spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia on Saturday that one person was missing and five residents were evacuated from the building.
Firefighters said they heard “bangs and noises” beneath the rubble, indicating that “there is still life underneath.”
Ambulance NSW told Daily Mail Australia that five people were taken to hospital after the explosion: three were transported to Mount Druitt Hospital and another three to Hawkesbury District Health Service. Their current conditions are unknown.
Another person was treated at the scene.
Fire and Rescue, ambulance, HAZMAT, police, gas and power personnel were able to enter the building Saturday afternoon only after gas was turned off to the area.
FRNSW teams trained in urban search and rescue operations using concrete cutters to clear debris recovered a small dog from the units who is being treated at the scene.
The house suffered ‘significant damage’, and a neighboring home was also impacted, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.
Fire and Rescue (pictured), ambulances, HAZMAT, police, gas and power personnel were able to enter the building on Saturday afternoon only after gas was turned off to the area.
Fire and Rescue NSW urged the public to stay away from the building.
“The gas supply was cut off at the scene of an explosion… allowing Fire and Rescue New South Wales (FRNSW) crews to enter and search the area,” they said.
“There is no fire at this time, but the scene remains volatile and unstable.”
Whalan resident Kathleen Morris said the sound of the explosion was massive.
“I heard a big bang and the whole house shook, everyone came out of their houses wondering what had happened,” he said.
A resident told mail that the explosion “shaken my house four streets away.”
Residents said the explosion was “massive”, while others living in suburbs several kilometers away also felt the shaking (pictured is the rubble of the collapsed house in Whalan).
One person on social media said they heard the explosion from their yard in Lethbridge Park, which is 2.5 kilometers away, while another said they heard it 9.4 kilometers away, in St Clair.
Terry Fisher, who was working around the corner at the time, told the publication that he ran towards the unit block when he heard a loud bang.
“I was working on the corner and I heard a very loud explosion,” he said. “She shook the house she was in, two streets away.”
“It was definitely a shock to see half the house destroyed. I knew something big had happened as I had never felt such a big explosion.”
More to come.
