The cause of the explosion and subsequent fire is currently under investigation.
Siblings, aged 4 and 6, were told to stay at home after their school classes were suspended due to frigid conditions in the US state of Missouri on Friday. The brothers, described as "sweetest little boys" by neighbours, were spending a rare weekday at their house when it exploded, killing both of them.
The deaths of four-year-old Julian Keiser and his six-year-old brother Jamison have sent shockwaves across the city of Defiance in Missouri. The boys' mother, Evelyn Turpiano, and grandparents, Jennifer Ham and Vern Ham, narrowly escaped the inferno, according to reports from officials and a GoFundMe page established for the grieving family.
Despite swift responses from firefighters and police, who arrived on the scene minutes after the reported explosion, the intensity of the blaze thwarted rescue efforts. Firefighters reportedly entered the engulfed home through a window in a desperate attempt to locate the boys. They were unable to reach them in time, and both Julian and Jamison were found dead.
Sharon Oberlag, a neighbour who heard the explosion, expressed the community's shock and grief. "Everybody came running of course to help and, God, we never realized to lose the two little boys - it's so sad what has happened," she said.
The cause of the explosion and subsequent fire is currently under investigation.
In response to the devastating incident, a GoFundMe page has been established that has garnered overwhelming support, raising over $145,000 as Monday.
"If you ever met the boys at the Defiance Roadhouse, the Christmas Festival, or the St. Patty's Day parade, you will never forget their enthusiasm for life and the joy they brought to all around them," the fundraiser states.