BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Now a developing story from overseas in Tokyo tonight. A massive explosion tears through a building in a busy entertainment district. At least 44 so far are dead. On the scene for us, CNN's Tokyo Bureau Chief Rebecca MacKinnon joins us live, what it is now late morning in Tokyo, Japan. Rebecca, hello.</s>REBECCA MACKINNON, CNN TOKYO BUREAU CHIEF: Hello, Bill. Well, yes, the current death toll is 44 people out of 47 taken to the hospital, so that's only three who have survived who were injured. 32 men, 12 women. Most were apparently killed by carbon monoxide poisoning. There was -- what happened was is that about 1 a.m. Saturday, an explosion went off in a mah jong parlor on the third floor of a building in this entertainment district, which is known for being quite racy. And then a fire spread through the third and fourth floors and people desperately tried to escape. Several people jumped out of the building. Several people were injured trying to do that. A couple of the injured who haven't died are people who jumped. And apparently the building had no fire escapes. It had only one stairwell, which was clogged with a lot of things that made it difficult for people to get out. On the floor above the fourth floor where the fire spread was what's called a hostess bar, where men pay women to drink with them. It's definitely a racy, night life kind of district, where people stay up very late and where the buildings are known for being quite old. And it appears in this case, possibly unsafe. An investigation is currently going on into the cause of the blast. Bill.</s>HEMMER: Rebecca MacKinnon reporting from Tokyo on the latest story there. Thank you, Rebecca.
Explosion in Tokyo Kills At Least 44