Five members of a family were killed and two others injured when an explosion occurred on the fourth storey of a local hotel in Peshawar early on Friday, police and rescuers said.
The powerful blast that followed a fire ripped through the fourth floor of Afandi Hotel on Grand Trunk Road, shattering glass walls and leaving the structure blackened. Four cars parked in front of the hotel building were also damaged due to impact.
The nature of the blast is yet to be ascertained, however, officials of bomb disposal squad ruled out the possibility of terrorism.
Among the dead were two women, two children and a man, Peshawar Capital City Police Officer Qazi Jameel told reporters. Initial investigations suggested that the family came to Peshawar from Hangu for medical treatment of one of their family members.
The injured, who were in a critical condition, were first taken to Lady Reading Hospital and later shifted to Islamabad for treatment of their burn injuries.
Assistant Inspector General (AIG) Shafqat Malik of Bomb Disposal Unit along with his team visited the blast site and told reporters that the incident did not appear to be the result of a terrorist activity.
Initial investigations showed the blast most probably occurred due to fire that erupted in one of the rooms, the AIG said. He added that the fire appeared to have erupted due to gas leakage
Police are collecting evidence from the site of the blast and have started an investigation into the incident.
