This Friday afternoon, the Madrid district of Carabanchel was shaken by a strong deflagration that has transformed the calm of the neighborhood into an emergency. The explosion took place at approximately 4:15 p.m. at number 36 Azcoitia street, causing a roar that alerted all the neighbors in the area: the magnitude of the incident was such that the roof slab of the building collapsed completely, collapsing on the fourth floor and leaving an image of destruction visible from the outside of the building.
The human consequences of this event have been tragic. According to reports provided by the Deputy Mayor of Madrid, Inmaculada Sanz, an elderly woman lost her life as a result of the impact and the collapse. In addition, the emergency services have attended to nine injured people; although most of them have minor injuries, one of them had to be evacuated urgently to the Hospital 12 de Octubre to receive specialized care, while the Samur Social is already working on site to support the affected families.
What was the origin of the explosion in Carabanchel?
According to El Periódico de España, authorities are strongly pointing to a gas leak as the main cause of the explosion. Fire and forensic experts are working on the ground to confirm whether it was a fault in the general installation or a localized problem in one of the houses.
Despite the severity of the incident, the rescue teams are maintaining “absolute caution” while they finish checking every corner of the property, although the first signs are encouraging in terms of locating the residents.
For the moment, there are no reports of missing persons or neighbors who have not been located after the explosion. Deputy Mayor Sanz has indicated that, after initial counts and interviews with survivors, there appear to be no victims trapped under the rubble.
However, debris removal and shoring is being carried out with extreme care to ensure that no one is left inside the collapsed areas and to secure the area before investigators can safely enter to determine the exact point of origin.
Extent of structural damage and eviction of neighbors
The blast wave not only affected number 36 Azcoitia Street, but has also jeopardized the stability of the adjacent buildings. Due to the risk of secondary collapses and the need to assess the integrity of the foundations, the emergency teams proceeded to the preventive evacuation of numbers 34, 36 and 38 of the same street.
The municipal architects are analyzing whether the collapse of the roof has compromised the load-bearing walls of the damaged block and whether the vibration from the explosion has generated dangerous cracks in the adjoining building.
📹 This is how the building in Carabanchel (Madrid) has been left after a gas explosion that left one dead and nine injured. pic.twitter.com/i5d5we2OWU
– THE OBJECTIVE (@TheObjective_en) January 9, 2026
This situation of structural insecurity has led to immediate relocation plans for residents who cannot return to their homes. Samur Social has been deployed to provide alternative housing for those who do not have a family support network, as the work to consolidate the building is expected to take several days.
The current priority is to determine whether the affected block can be salvaged or whether the damage to the structure is so severe that it precludes rehabilitation of the houses in the short term.
The reason for the scaffolding and the previous works on the property
One of the unknowns that has circulated among the neighbors is the presence of a scaffolding covering the facade of the building at the time of the incident. It has been confirmed that the building was undergoing a comprehensive renovation process that included rehabilitation work on the façade.
However, a relevant detail is that there was also a prior notice for the neighboring buildings informing about a specific technical intervention: the separation of the gas pipes in the estate, a work that is usually complex and requires manipulating the fuel supply network.
A key piece of information for the investigation is the schedule of the workers who were on the scaffolding. The workers had finished their workday at 2:00 p.m., just two hours before the deflagration occurred. This time margin is essential for the experts, who will have to determine whether the work carried out during the morning could have been directly related to the leak or whether it was a fateful coincidence.
For the time being, it is being analyzed whether the scaffolding could have acted as a containment element or whether, on the contrary, it hindered the escape of the gases accumulated inside.
