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NEWFIELD – A suspected gas explosion splintered a two-story Gloucester County house, killing a married couple in a blast so powerful that it shook neighbors from their beds around 6:15 a.m. Saturday.

Firefighters arriving in the 300 block of Oakwood Drive found the house obliterated, and debris from the blast scattered over a one-block area.

Killed in the explosion were husband and wife John Paladino, 73, and Carole Paladino, 72, who were the only occupants in the home. They had celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last October, according to Carole Paladino's Facebook page.

The Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office said foul play was not suspected. Autopsies on the couple are scheduled for Sunday.

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House explosion in Newfield

Stunned Newfield residents watched Saturday morning as first responders, shrouded in smoke, sifted through the rubble and tended to hot spots as tufts of pink insulation rained down.

Audra Manasco of Buena stood at the edge of crime scene tape ringing her mother’s home on Fawn Drive and voiced concern for the couple who resided next door for decades.

“This is insane,” Manasco said in disbelief, holding a hand over her mouth.

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She raced to the scene after getting a frantic call from her 10-year-old son Paul Vidal, who was staying with his grandmother.

The youngster tried to explain to his mother what was unfolding at the edge of his grandmother’s backyard.

The neighbor’s house “blew up, it blew up, it’s gone,” he told his mother.

Speaking at the scene with his mother’s arm around him, Paul told The Daily Journal, “I just heard this big explosion — I couldn’t describe it, it was like a horror movie.”

“The explosion came in and then went out,” he said, describing the blast wave rolling through his grandmother’s home.

The force blew out windows and shattered his grandmother’s china collection.

“Everything is broken,” Paul said, then noticing with amazement the two trash cans outside his grandmother's house remained unmoved.

The force lifted the roof up from over her mother’s kitchen, which then dropped down, Manasco said.

Firetrucks lined Oakwood Drive, Rosemont Avenue and Fawn Drive. Fire lines snaked down the streets. A nearby recreational vehicle caught fire.

First responders watched for falling debris. A rug draped over utility lines and a mattress was visible snagged in tree limbs.

A three-pane picture window was blown out of a nearby Oakwood Drive house and the front door was flung in the bushes across the street.

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Among the destruction, sentimental items drifted down the street unscathed, including a greeting card, photos, and pages of sheet music.

Manasco spoke with fondness for the couple, who have resided at the house for decades. She noted they had an appliance delivered Friday.

Jason Paladino, who is related to the Oakwood Drive couple and lives nearby, was in the shower when he felt the blast.

“I thought lightning struck the air conditioner or a transformer,” he said. “I called 911.”

“It was such an intense explosion” Paladino said. He quickly dismissed his transformer theory. “Something about it felt different.”

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He walked down the road and saw the house demolished.

‘’I saw the destruction,” he said. “It was a beautiful two-story house, it had been there for years."

“You knew it was bad, it had to be gas,” Paladino said. “It blew and by the time the third firetruck got here, the fire had died down.”

The cause of the blast remains under investigation.

Agencies investigating are the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office, the Gloucester County Fire Marshal, the County Office of Emergency Management, the New Jersey State Police Arson/Bomb Unit, the state Division of Fire Safety, the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Franklin Township Police Department.

Fire companies responding to the explosion and fire were Star Cross, Malaga, Forest Grove, Newfield, Franklinville, Vineland Stations 3 & 4, Willow Grove, Minatola and Collins Lake.