2nd Body Recovered From NYC Building Collapse Site

A second body was found today at the site of a New York City building explosion and collapse, a city official told ABC News, shortly after New York City Police Department said the searchers looking for two people believed to be missing found a first body.

City officials told ABC that witness accounts said the two missing people were in close proximity to each other just before the blast, so they were anticipating that both would be found near each other in the rubble.

Identification of the bodies was pending, said the NYPD. The explosion, which happened Thursday afternoon, left 22 people injured and two missing, city officials have said.

Some containers of debris from the site have been taken to a "secure" undisclosed location for additional examination if necessary -- either to look for more evidence or remains, a city official directly involved in the operation said today.

A total of 750 cubic yards of debris has been sifted twice on-site at this point, and put into containers and removed, the official said.

Operations are continuing at the site in the East Village section of the city, and there could be an update on developments this evening, the official said.

Cleanup of the site was scheduled to take up to a week, but looks like it could be done by Tuesday, given the current weather and pace of operations, the official said.

Searchers have encountered sections of debris that are still smoldering -- "hot spots" -- and they've had to be extinguished, according to the official.

They are hoping to get at least partial access to the restaurant area of the building today, although the above-ground pile of debris will not be cleared today, the official said.