LONDON - One person was killed and a number of others were missing following an explosion on the island of Jersey, off the coast of northern France, police said on Saturday.

"Tragically we have one confirmed fatality," Robin Smith, Chief Officer of the States of Jersey Police, said in a video statement posted online by broadcaster ITV.

He said a three-story building had completely collapsed and a search and rescue operation had begun to find around a dozen other people unaccounted for. He described the scene as very dangerous.

"It is a pretty devastating scene, I regret to say," he said.

Smith said fire services had been called to the property on Friday night before the explosion after residents had reported the smell of gas. He did not comment on the cause of the explosion, and said that would be subject to investigation.

Jersey is a British Crown Dependency with its own financial and legal systems and a resident population of just over 100,000 people.

The building where the explosion occurred is located near the harbour in the island's capital St Helier.

(Reporting by William James; Editing by Alex Richardson and Clelia Oziel)