Police have confirmed two people have died in a 'major gas explosion' and the subsequent house fire on a quiet residential street in Derbyshire.
Firefighters were called to the 'major incident' on Valley View Road, in Riddings, Derbyshire at 7.33am this morning.
The bodies of a man and a woman, named locally as married couple Simon and Shelley Saxton-Cooper, were found in the bedroom of the destroyed house by fire investigators.
Their family has been informed but they have not yet been formally identified.
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The bodies of a man and woman have been found in the bedroom of this house on Valley View Road, in Riddings, Derbyshire following a 'gas explosion' at around 7.30am this morning
The house was so unstable paramedics and firefighters were not be able to enter the building for hours
It is believed the couple's pet dog somehow managed to escape the inferno and is uninjured.
A police spokesman said: 'At this stage there are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances surrounding the fire but investigations are at an early stage.'
Chief Inspector Steve Pont, from Derbyshire Constabulary, said: 'This is an awful tragedy. Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the two people who have lost their lives.'
An air ambulance landed in a nearby field at 8.30am and left 45-minutes later, while fire investigation dogs, a forensics team, three ambulance crews and a hazardous incident response team remain at the scene.
Although initial reports indicate it was a gas explosion that sparked the fire immediate neighbours claim their gas is still working.
But a police spokeswoman said it was too soon to say what caused the explosion and a gas leak has not been ruled out as a possible cause.
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Fire crews found the building 'well alight' when they arrived at 7.30am, and most of the roof and loft area of the brick house was destroyed in the incident.
A Derbyshire Fire and Rescue spokesman told ITV News earlier this morning the house was 'so unstable' emergency services could not enter for several hours.
He added they would have to wait until the building was declared safe, a process which took some hours.
David Lovett, an incident commander from Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, said three crews were sent to the street after reports of a house fire and possible explosion.
He told the BBC: 'They initially turned up, the house was well-alight and on fire and there was a partial collapse of the structure.
It is believed the couple's dog somehow managed to escape the inferno (aftermath pictured) and is uninjured
Neighbours were evacuated and specialists worked to try and make the hou(se safe
These aerial shots show the extensive damage caused to the house during the explosion and subsequent fire
'At the moment we have dealt with the fire situation and that is under control, we have evacuated a neighbouring property and we are working with some specialists now to try to ensure that the structure is safe so that we can do a full and thorough search of it.
'Our number-one priority is to get inside and do a thorough search. We will be here as long as we are needed. Then we will need to work in conjunction with police to organise a search of the property.
'Apart from stopping the spread of the fire to other properties, there was nothing we could have done.'
Firefighters and an ambulance crew respond to the 'major gas explosion' in a street in Derbyshire today
Firefighters were unable to enter the property for several hours because it was considered 'too dangerous'
Neighbours have described hearing 'a loud bang' and say they saw a plume of smoke rising from the house shortly before the emergency services were called.
A neighbour, who did not wish to be named, said: 'The road is blocked off and we can't get out.
'There was an explosion and we know that there has been a house burnt to the ground. We have heard a lot of fire engines and sirens go past.'
Another resident living on nearby Oakland Crescent, said: 'There were definitely people inside.
'I know the person. I don't want to talk about it.'
Another resident said her husband, who is a firefighter, tried to help. She said: 'I was in the drive of our house at the time.
'My husband, who is a firefighter himself, went over the house (to try to help) but it was too hot and he couldn't get inside.'
Several fire engines remain at the scene and an aerial platform was used to tackle the fire
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service said they were called to the explosion along with East Midlands Ambulance Service's Hazardous Area Response Team (HART), who remain at the scene
Mark Robins, 32, who also lives nearby, told the Derby Telegraph: 'When you are lying in bed, you don't know what is going on but it sounded like a loud bang, followed by a noise that sounded like rubble going down into a skip.'
Another resident told the newspaper: 'Around 7.30am, there was a noise that was like a 'woof', followed by a second one and I looked out of the bedroom window and could see a large plume of smoke rising.
'We went into another bedroom and we could see the flames between the houses and we could see them licking around what had to be the outside of the house.'
One neighbour said : 'I was in bed when suddenly I heard this loud thump, it must have been about 7.30am.
'I didn't think much of it, but then about half-an-hour later I heard the whoosh of a helicopter overhead followed by sirens.
'I got up and looked through the window and I could see smoke rising from Valley View Road - I've got relatives there so I was really worried.
'So I went to check it out at about 8.30am, and by then there was just loads of smoke billowing out of the house. The side-door was completely gone and the roof was totally destroyed - it was a shell.'
Another neighbour said: 'At about 7.30am I heard this sound. It wasn't an bang, more a loud 'whoosh', like something combusting very quickly.
'Then I saw the flames. They were licking right around the roof of the house, and smoke was rising out of it.
'Firefighters came really quickly, the first was here about 7.45am, and then came the ambulances.
'They put it out quickly, but haven't been able to get in. I just hope whoever's in there is alright, but it doesn't look good.'
Emergency services had been told to wait for structural engineers to determine if it was safe enough for them to enter the property to tackle the blaze.
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service said they were called to the explosion along with East Midlands Ambulance Service's Hazardous Area Response Team (HART), who remain at the scene.
A spokeswoman for Derbyshire Fire and Rescue said this morning: 'The fire is ongoing but we are unable to enter the building due to its structural integrity - it's too dangerous at present so we are fighting the fire from the outside.
'We will be conducting a joint investigation with the police to determine the cause of the fire.
'We are unable to release any more details at this stage until we've entered the building.'
A spokeswoman for Derbyshire police said: 'Officers were called to the house shortly after 7.30am today.
'The investigation is at an early stage. Further information will be released as soon as possible.'
Neighbours have described hearing 'a loud bang' and say they saw a plume of smoke rising from the house
Police have now confirmed the bodies of a married couple were found in the bedroom of the property
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