Emergency services in Paris say the death toll from a hotel fire in the early hours of this morning now stands at 20, while more than 50 other people were injured.
Ten children are among the dead while at least 12 of the injured are in a serious condition.
Many victims were African immigrants waiting to be re-housed although a number of tourists were also staying at the one-star hotel in the French capital's Opera district.
Witnesses reported that some of the guests leapt out of the hotel's windows to escape the flames.
Fire Brigade investigators at the scene of the blaze said they had so far found nothing to suggest that the cause had been criminal.
However, they added that the investigation required more time.
The fire broke out at around 1.30am this morning Irish time at the six-storey Paris-Opera Hotel near the Galeries Lafayette department store.
It is thought 76 people had been staying at the 32-room hotel which was gutted by flames.
