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A seven-year-old boy who died in an explosion in a residential street in Newcastle has been named locally, as his aunt described him as a “beautiful, funny and caring little boy”.
Northumbria Police confirmed that a young child had died at the scene of the horrific blast in the Benwell area of the city in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Another body believed to be a man in his 30s has since been discovered at the damaged row of homes, the force said on Thursday, as an investigation begins into the cause of the explosion.
Writing on Facebook, Abbie York named the boy killed as Archie York, and said he was her nephew.
Sharing pictures of the boy, she wrote: “Archie’s life was so tragically snatched from him in the early hours of the morning in the explosion in Benwell.
“My family are all so truly devastated and heartbroken beyond words by this and we would respect privacy at this time.”
She added: “Archie was my nephew and the most beautiful, funny and caring little boy and his name deserves to be shouted from the rooftops! We all love you so much little man, you didn’t deserve this.”
Following the explosion, fire engulfed at least six flats on the small line of homes in Violet Close, with firefighters working through the early morning to tackle the flames.
As dawn broke, the extent of the damage was revealed with at least one house completely destroyed, with roofs collapsed as firefighters worked among the rubble.
A family friend of some of the victims said there had been a “devastating explosion”.
On Wednesday afternoon, assistant chief fire officer Lynsey McVay from Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters were searching the buildings to ensure that all persons are accounted for.
“Our priority was to establish what casualties were involved and what resources we needed to support the incident and bring it to a conclusion,” she said.
On Thursday, Northumbria Police said a second body, believed to be of a man aged in his 30s, had been found.
Superintendent Darren Adam said: “Our thoughts are very much with the family and friends of the two people who have tragically lost their lives. Specialist officers are supporting their loved ones and we would urge everyone to respect their privacy at this time.”
The force said six people, five adults and a child, were taken to hospital for a varying degrees of injuries - all but one of these have now been discharged.
A man in his 30s remains in hospital in a critical but stable condition, a spokesman said.
A man who lives in the area, Kieran Chapman, 28, has set up a GoFundMe for the people involved in the explosion, which had raised more than £17,000 by Thursday afternoon.
He said on Wednesday: “I woke up this morning to some absolutely terrible news, and I just feel like there’s something that, as a country, that we could do, to pull together and help a local family out that obviously have just lost absolutely everything.”
