Six people were killed when a roof collapsed at a new terminal at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle international airport near Paris Sunday, triggering a search for trapped survivors and questions about safety. Slabs of concrete and metal crashed onto a seated waiting area in the less than one-year-old showcase terminal 2E just before 7 a.m., bringing down a raised walkway at one of the world's busiest airports. The collapse left a hole of 50 yards by 30 meters in the long, tunnel-like building. Rescue workers with dogs searched through glass, concrete and metal and listened for anyone trapped underneath. "Time is a factor. We have to get to the injured as quickly as possible," said Paris fire brigade spokesman Laurent Vibert. "It seems to have happened very quickly some people heard a noise before it happened. Another fire-fighter said: "It's like a scene after an earthquake." The French government ruled out a terror attack but said the cause of the accident was unknown. Most victims were believed to be passengers arriving or waiting to depart at the busy terminal, while three policemen were hurt. Ambulances and fire brigade vehicles rushed to and from the terminal as the injured were ferried to hospital. Michel Sapin, prefect of the local St. Denis community, confirmed six deaths and said three others were badly hurt. He said the toll of dead and injured could rise to about 12. "Luckily there was not too much traffic at the time of the incident," he told reporters at the airport, adding planes were arriving from the United States and Johannesburg at the time and one was leaving for Prague. One of the injured was Chinese and another was from Ivory Coast, he said. Officials said they did not know what caused the collapse at a terminal which opened only last summer at a cost of 900 million US dollar. It opened late, partly because a commission at first withheld a safety certificate. "Some people heard cracks before the accident and there was concrete dust coming from the ceiling. This was a very prestigious hall and it's a very hard day for us today," said Pierre Graff, chairman of Aeroports de Paris (ADP), the Paris airports authority. He said all lines of inquiry would be pursued. President Jacques Chirac expressed his condolences and demanded a thorough investigation. Transport Minister Gilles de Robien, who visited the airport with Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin, ruled out the possibility it was a terror attack. Other terminals were still open at the airport but road traffic built up outside the airport. Terminal 2E is mainly used by national carrier Air France but also by other international airlines and has more than 50 flights a day. "We will adapt our flights depending on how long the terminal is closed. Today it is not too problematic as flight arrivals and departures are being pushed onto other terminals," Air France spokesman Jean-Claude Couturier said. **PHOTO CAPTION*** General view from the tarmac of a roof which collapsed at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle international airport near Paris May 23. (Reuters)