At least one person has died after an explosion in a block of flats in St Helier, Jersey police have said.

About 12 people are believed to be missing, with two “walking wounded” being treated at the hospital.

Emergency services arrived at the scene at Haut du Mont, Pier Road, in the capital in the early hours of Saturday.

Robin Smith, the chief officer of the States of Jersey police, said firefighters had been called to the area the night before after residents reported smelling gas.

He said the scene of the blast was “devastating”, and that there could be more deaths.

“We have a three-storey building that has completely collapsed – described from a demolition point of view as a pancake that has dropped almost straight down,” he said.