An explosion in the Brazilian seaside city of Rio de Janeiro has resulted in at least seven people, including a child, being injured.

The BBC reports that, aside from the human injury, the blast, which is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak, damaged dozens of buildings in the São Cristóvão neighborhood.

The Associated Press reports firefighters are still searching through the rubble looking for possible victims of the blast.

The Civil Defense Department has announced that they are investigating the cause of the explosion, which was reportedly powerful enough to be heard by people living as far as 4 miles away.

A local resident named Marlene Sangy Aires told O Globo newspaper what she and her family had experienced at the time of the explosion, saying, "The roof caved in and my 21-year-old son managed to shield my 18-year-old daughter with his body."

"We were trapped in the rubble and used the light of our mobile phones to signal to the rescue workers. They found us and pulled us out," the blast survivor said.

No one was killed in the blast, but emergency workers said that around 40 buildings were damaged.

Meanwhile, Rio de Janeiro, a well known tourist hot spot, has been selected for the finals of the 2016 Olympic sailing races, and will soon have the eyes of the world focused on it.

Guanabara Bay, where the sailing completion is set to take place, has been criticized for its heavy pollution, which is feared to pose a danger to race contestants. As quoted in the Washington Post, Brazilian Olympic windsurfer Ricardo Winicki said, “It is one of the dirtiest places. And one of the most beautiful.”

The whole of Brazil is currently facing many challenges. The Petrobras kickback scandal has left the government shaken, and the nation's economy is going through a deep recession.

Despite this, President Dilma Rousseff remains optimistic about her nation’s future.

In a piece she wrote for CNN, the leader did, however, suggest that her country could use the help of the rest of the world, writing, “While Brazil is determined and willing to meet its responsibilities in helping to promote a world of peace, progress, inclusion and sustainability, it must do so in cooperation with the international community, and specifically the United Nations.”