By COLlive reporter
A package blast on a busy pedestrian street in the heart of the city of Lyon on Friday wounded more than a dozen people.
The small blast occurred around 5:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m. ET) in a central shopping area, near the intersection of Victor Hugo road and Sala road. Its cause has not been fully determined yet.
An eight-year-old girl is among those injured, according to French media. The center of the city has been locked down by police.
Police were hunting for a man believed to be in his early 30s on a mountain bicycle who witnesses and security cameras saw in the area immediately before the explosion.
Authorities in Paris have opened a terror probe into the blast, a spokeswoman for the city prosecutor told CNN. They believe the explosion could have been caused by a parcel bomb packed with nails, she told CNN.
French President Macron characterized the explosion as an attack, telling an interviewer on Friday evening, “I’m late because there was an attack in Lyon.”
Hashem yerachem!