A man and woman have died after a “suspicious” explosion at a house in Bristol, which has hospitalised three people.
Avon and Somerset Police declared a major incident after the explosion at an address in Sterncourt Road at around 6.30am on Sunday.
Three people, including a child, were taken to hospital with minor injuries following the incident. All five people are understood to have been in the same property at the time of the explosion.
The families of the two people who died are being supported by specially trained officers.
Police are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident. Officers are also carrying out a search at a property in Speedwell which is linked to the man who died.
The cause of the explosion is being treated as suspicious, the force said, but not as a suspected terrorist event.
Superintendent Matt Ebbs told reporters in an update on Sunday: “At about 6.17am we received a call to attend a domestic-related incident at a residential address in Sterncourt Road.
“Officers were sent to the scene but shortly before they arrived, at just after 6.30am, there was an explosion inside the property.
“A woman and a man have died at the address and we’re treating the explosion as suspicious.
“Three people, a man, a woman and a child, were taken to hospital to be treated for minor injuries.”
An emergency response was in place around Sterncourt Road, with police cordons on roads near the property.
Police cars and vans were present, with an ambulance and a bomb disposal team. Those living within an area cordoned off by police were evacuated to a temporary rest centre.
There is not believed to be any significant damage to nearby properties.
Residents said the neighbourhood is usually quiet and friendly; Bradley Shepherd, who lives nearby on Bradeston Grove, said he “jumped out of bed” when he heard a “large explosion noise” at the time of the blast.
Police and armed police were arriving to the property “within minutes”, he told the BBC.
He added that the entire neighbourhood were told to evacuate their properties within 15-20 minutes and ushered to the local Harvester.
Officers will be carrying out patrols in the area “to provide reassurance and advice” as a cordon is expected to remain in place until at least Sunday evening.
The College of Policing defines a major incident as “an event or situation with a range of serious consequences which requires special arrangements to be implemented by one or more emergency responder agencies”.
