Overview
- The fire, which began around 3 a.m. Friday, gutted a five‑storey residential building in Clermont‑Ferrand’s historic centre and caused the collapse of the fourth and fifth floors.
- Prosecutors announced Sunday that a 21‑year‑old has been formally charged and placed in pretrial detention while a 20‑year‑old who surrendered faces charges for failing to prevent the crime.
- Firefighters assisted by search dogs and a unit specialized in collapsed‑structure searches recovered three bodies the first night and a fourth the next day.
- The building sits on a very narrow dead‑end that limited vehicle access, and rescuers reported collapsed stairwells, roofs and floors that complicated searches and recovery work.
- A judicial investigation is ongoing and officials say autopsies and DNA comparisons will be used to confirm the four victims’ identities and to clarify whether the blaze was deliberately started.