A 7-year-old boy has been killed in a house explosion in northeast England

LONDON -- A 7-year-old boy was killed and six people have been hospitalized after an explosion inside a house in Newcastle, northeast England on Wednesday, police said.

Drone photos show the middle house of a row of six reduced to a pile of smoldering rubble, with other homes badly damaged. Rescue worker with search dogs combed the wreckage after firefighters used hoses to put out lingering flames,

Superintendent Darren Adams of Northumbria Police said the boy had died at the scene of the overnight blast, and the six hospitalized people had “varying injuries.”

Police said the cause was being investigated. Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said his department was “working with Northern Gas Networks to provide all possible assistance and support.”