An explosion at a petrol station in northwest Ireland has killed at least nine people.
Eight people were injured in the blast in Donegal County, police said on Saturday, and they were taken to hospital.
The search for other possible victims at the site of the explosion in the village of Creeslough continues.
It was initially unclear what triggered the enormous explosion in the small village of Creeslough on Friday.
According to the police, the explosion on Friday destroyed a gas station and parts of a nearby residential complex.
Two two-storey residential buildings collapsed and the facade of a third adjacent building was destroyed.
In addition to police and fire brigade teams, coastguard helicopters and rescue workers from Northern Ireland were also deployed.
A local resident told the BBC the explosion sounded like a "bomb".
Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue, who represents North East Donegal in the Irish Parliament, compared the images to events during the Northern Ireland conflict.
"The scenes from the event are reminiscent of the images of the riots years ago," the minister told Irish broadcaster RTE.
The 400-inhabitant town of Creeslough is about 50 kilometers from the border with Northern Ireland.
Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin thanked the emergency services and expressed his condolences to the victims and their families.
People "all over the island" are overcome with "the same sense of shock and utter devastation" at this "tragic loss of life," he said.
Ireland's President Michael D. Higgins was also "shocked" in a statement.
This tragedy is "a terrible blow to a closely knit community" in which every loss and injury is "felt by every member of the community and far beyond," he said.