Jagatsinghpur: In an extremely tragic mishap, two persons died while two others sustained critical injuries after the roof and walls of their house collapsed following a suspected firecracker blast in Jagatsinghpur district of Odisha on Friday night.

The deceased were identified as Rajesh Das and his wife Rani, residents of Badabag village. Those injured in the blast are Rajesh's younger brother Paresh and his wife Lakshmipriya. They are currently undergoing treatment at SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. 

As per reports, Rajesh and Paresh are sons of one Sushil Kumar Das, a firecracker manufacturer. Their families were staying together in the same building when the blast occured, and were trapped when the house collapsed. Police, National Disaster Response Force and fire services rushed to the spot and started rescue operations. 

The team rescued Paresh and his wife in a critical state from the debris and first shifted them to the district headquarters hospital. Later, as their condition deteriorated, they were shifted to SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack. Rajesh, however, died on the spot. His wife Rani, who was reportedly buried under the rubble, succumbed later. Eyewitnesses said while the roof and walls of the house collapsed, the impact of the explosion extended upto a kilometre in the area. 

Though the exact cause of the explosion is not established yet, it is suspected that fireworks led to the blast. 

Police informed media that the search operation is still underway and the children had a narrow escape as they were sleeping in a separate building. Efforts are also on to probe whether the fireworks were being illegally manufactured. 

A pall of gloom descended on the village following the incident.