<p>Eight people have died in an overnight blaze at an apartment block in Paris that is being treated by police as a possible arson attack, officials said Tuesday.</p>.<p>The fire on the top floors of an eight-storey building in the rue Erlanger in the wealthy 16th district of southwest Paris is one of the most deadly in the capital in years.</p>.<p>Pictures from the fire brigade showed flames leaping out of top floor windows and firemen climbing ladders to rescue terrified residents from thick black smoke.</p>.<p>Described as a "scene of incredible violence", the blaze left around 30 people -- including six firefighters -- with injuries.</p>.<p>"One person has been arrested. It's a woman. She's currently in custody," Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said from the scene on Tuesday morning.</p>.<p>An investigation has been opened into the criminal charge of causing death by arson.</p>.<p>The fire started at about 1:00 am (0000 GMT) and was finally brought under control more than five hours later by around 200 firefighters.</p>.<p>Fire service spokesman Captain Clement Cognon told AFP at the scene overnight that "the toll could still increase" because firefighters were yet to search the upper floors of the eight-storey block, "where the fire was the most violent".</p>.<p>Some of those affected scrambled on to nearby roofs to escape the smoke and flames.</p>.<p>The residential neighbourhood lies on the edge of the vast Bois de Boulogne park and close to the stadium of football club Paris Saint-Germain, the Parc des Princes.</p>.<p>Captain Cognon added: "We had to carry out many rescues, notably for around a dozen people who had taken refuge on the roofs. In total, about 50 people were evacuated by firefighters, including through the installation of ladders."</p>.<p>Two adjacent buildings were also evacuated as a precaution and local officials were on site to help find housing for residents who could not return to their homes.</p>.<p>Several streets were cordoned off by police and fire crews, and an AFP journalist said a strong smell of smoke hung in the air.</p>.<p>The blaze follows a fire caused by a powerful gas explosion last month that killed four people in the city's central 9th arrondissement.</p>.<p>In late December, two women and two girls died from asphyxiation in a fire that broke out in a public housing block in a suburb northeast of Paris.</p>
<p>Eight people have died in an overnight blaze at an apartment block in Paris that is being treated by police as a possible arson attack, officials said Tuesday.</p>.<p>The fire on the top floors of an eight-storey building in the rue Erlanger in the wealthy 16th district of southwest Paris is one of the most deadly in the capital in years.</p>.<p>Pictures from the fire brigade showed flames leaping out of top floor windows and firemen climbing ladders to rescue terrified residents from thick black smoke.</p>.<p>Described as a "scene of incredible violence", the blaze left around 30 people -- including six firefighters -- with injuries.</p>.<p>"One person has been arrested. It's a woman. She's currently in custody," Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said from the scene on Tuesday morning.</p>.<p>An investigation has been opened into the criminal charge of causing death by arson.</p>.<p>The fire started at about 1:00 am (0000 GMT) and was finally brought under control more than five hours later by around 200 firefighters.</p>.<p>Fire service spokesman Captain Clement Cognon told AFP at the scene overnight that "the toll could still increase" because firefighters were yet to search the upper floors of the eight-storey block, "where the fire was the most violent".</p>.<p>Some of those affected scrambled on to nearby roofs to escape the smoke and flames.</p>.<p>The residential neighbourhood lies on the edge of the vast Bois de Boulogne park and close to the stadium of football club Paris Saint-Germain, the Parc des Princes.</p>.<p>Captain Cognon added: "We had to carry out many rescues, notably for around a dozen people who had taken refuge on the roofs. In total, about 50 people were evacuated by firefighters, including through the installation of ladders."</p>.<p>Two adjacent buildings were also evacuated as a precaution and local officials were on site to help find housing for residents who could not return to their homes.</p>.<p>Several streets were cordoned off by police and fire crews, and an AFP journalist said a strong smell of smoke hung in the air.</p>.<p>The blaze follows a fire caused by a powerful gas explosion last month that killed four people in the city's central 9th arrondissement.</p>.<p>In late December, two women and two girls died from asphyxiation in a fire that broke out in a public housing block in a suburb northeast of Paris.</p>