Acropolis blast injures two, collapses building in Athens' Plaka

A powerful explosion rattled the historic Plaka district on Friday morning, sending an old two‑storey building tumbling onto the streets below the Acropolis. Two women were rescued from an adjacent property and taken to hospital, while a passer‑by sustained a minor injury. The blast also damaged neighbouring buildings, parked cars and the nearby First Greek Evangelical Church.

The event unfolded early on Friday, 25 September 2026 as tourists and locals hurried along the cobbled streets of Plaka, the historic part of Athens that lies at the foot of the Acropolis hill, Greece’s most visited ancient monument. A sudden roar echoed from a narrow alley on Lysikratous Street, where an old two‑storey building — long used for residential and short‑term rental apartments — shuddered and collapsed. The structure fell onto the street, crushing parked cars and scattering rubble across the road. A blaze erupted, and the nearby First Greek Evangelical Church suffered shattered windows and interior damage.

Media additions

Firefighters were the first to arrive, working under heavy dust and debris. They rescued two women from an adjacent building, the New York Post reports that the victims were taken to hospital. A third person, a passer‑by, was lightly injured by flying debris, according to the same source. The Greek police cordoned off the area and deployed a sniffer dog to search for any missing persons in the rubble. The fire department maintained that the search and rescue operation was still ongoing several hours after the blast.

Local residents and witnesses offered early accounts. Andreas Martzaklis, who lives in a building adjacent to the collapsed structure, told reporters that an elderly couple had lived on the second floor of the building that collapsed. He was unsure whether the couple were inside when the explosion occurred or had escaped. Martzaklis also said that one apartment in the building had been operating as a short‑term rental, while the others were privately owned. The rescued women were all tourists, he added. Who got out of the building that is destroyed, we don’t know anything, Martzaklis said, recalling how he heard the blast while sipping coffee.

“Of course we went in. It was heartbreaking. From the bottom to the top, there is no window that has not been broken,”

Giotis Kantartzis, pastor of the First Greek Evangelical Church in Athens, via local media

Across the same day, the Euronews video captured the chaos: rubble strewn across the street, a smoldering fire, and emergency crews inspecting the surrounding structures for further instability. The footage confirmed that the blast had damaged several neighbouring buildings, including a church and a residential block, and that the fire had spread to nearby parked cars.

Investigators have not yet confirmed a definitive cause. Greek media have repeatedly suggested a gas leak as the most likely trigger, a hypothesis echoed by local authorities. The Batesville Daily Guard notes that the cause remains unclear but that a gas leak was suspected. The same uncertainty is reflected in the North Somerset Times article, which states that the cause was not immediately clear, with local media pointing to a gas leak.

The explosion’s location, Plaka, the historic foot of the Acropolis, has amplified concerns about the safety of one of the world’s most visited tourist sites.

Authorities have urged the public to stay clear of the area while the fire department continues to assess the stability of surrounding buildings and the risk of further collapse. The police remain on standby to manage traffic and support emergency services.

In the aftermath, the First Greek Evangelical Church announced that its Sunday service would be held outdoors due to extensive window damage. Pastor Giotis Kantartzis expressed the emotional toll of the incident, describing the shattered windows as a “heartbreaking” reminder of the fragility of historic structures.

Investigators are conducting a thorough analysis of the site. The fire department has deployed a sniffer dog to search the rubble for any missing persons, while structural engineers assess the integrity of neighbouring buildings.

What to Watch Next

• Updates from the fire department on the fire’s containment and structural assessments.

For more coverage of global incidents, visit our World section.