Officials say a gas explosion has killed at least two people and injured eight in an apartment building in the southwestern Russian city of Volgograd.
The May 16 blast destroyed part of the building, and Russian media quoted officials as saying that people might remain trapped in a shop on the underground level.
Regional Governor Andrei Bocharov said the blast was caused by damage to a gas pipe that was most likely inflicted by workers trying to "illegally" tap into a water pipe.
An investigation into suspected safety violations was opened.