A man and his three children died of severe burns in a fire early Saturday morning at their home in Machida, Tokyo, police and firefighters said.

The fire broke out around 2:20 a.m. and destroyed the two-story, wooden home of Masashi Yoshino, 45, they said.

He and his three children -- Risa, 8, Takuma, 6, and Misa, 3 -- were rescued from the second floor but died later.

Yoshino's wife, Atsuko, 34, was working at a nearby restaurant when the fire broke out, they said.