A MOTHER and her two sons are believed to have died in an explosion that took place in Leicester last Sunday (25).
Of Indian origin, Mary Ragoobar, 46, and sons Shane, 18, and Sean, 17 had apparently moved to the UK from Mauritius. The family are believed to have been living in the flat above a shop which was destroyed in the blast.
The family are reported missing, alongside Shane’s girlfriend Leah Beth Reek, 18. The other individual believed to be missing is Viktorija Ijevleva, 22, who was working in the shop at the time.
Jose Ragoobar, husband to Mrs Ragoobar, is thought to have been working at the time of the explosion. The family’s youngest son is said to have been taken to hospital and is currently in a critical condition.
The reason for the explosion is not yet clear.
Stanislav Stosiek, who went to English Martyrs Catholic School with Sean Ragoobeer, said the incident has “[broken] my heart”.
“The fact he’s just 17, not 18 – so young,” he said. “He had so much ahead of him, so much.
“He really liked spending time with friends at English Martyrs for sure. He had many close friends there that are mourning right now, and I think they’re all going to be devastated to hear he’s dead.”
The evening of the incident, neighbours reported that their own homes shook with the force of the blast.
Firefighters worked through the night to control the blaze, but by early Monday afternoon (26), it was still not extinguished.
Pictures and videos posted on social media showed a property engulfed in flames, with rubble and debris scattered around.
Tahir Khan, who was driving past when the blast happened, said: “I looked on the road and half the building was on the road.
“Literally the whole of the side of the building had been blown out. I couldn’t believe it, it was like a Hollywood movie.”
