Explosion rips through supermarket before opening hours in southern Russia

Members of emergency services work at the site of a collapsed building after an explosion in Vladikavkaz, Russia February 12, 2021. REUTERS/Kazbek Basayev

MOSCOW (Reuters) - A powerful explosion caused by a suspected gas leak ripped through a supermarket in the southern Russian city of Vladikavkaz before opening hours on Friday, authorities said.

No one was thought dead from the explosion. The supermarket's guard said he had been asleep in the building and had survived the blast largely unscathed.