LAKE OZARK, MO - Firefighters are looking into the cause of a fire that killed four children left home alone early Thursday morning.
The children were identified as 14-year-old Tyler Otto, 8-year-old Cason, 5-year-old Max, and 4-year-old Levi.
Two parents lived in the home and had left the four children alone. The parents returned to the site while firefighters were working to extinguish the blaze.
The home was a single-story structure with a walk out basement and reportedly did not have smoke alarms installed.
The Lake Ozark Fire District first received a call at 12:54 a.m. for the fire.
The neighbor who called 911, Eddie Helt, said he was able to get the other neighbors out of their home. Unfortunately, he could not access the burning home because of the flames.
"I tried to go down to see if I could gain entrance, but I could not get close to the door," said Helt.
The first units on the scene tried to do a primary search, but couldn't get in because of the fire's intensity. The fire was so intense that it spread to the neighbor's stairs, but firefighters quickly extinguished it.
When they put out the fire, they found the four children and two pets dead inside.
Neighbors said they are devastated. One neighbor, whose home sustained fire damage, said the fire could have killed him and his wife if Helt had not come knocking on his door.
Helt said he and his wife are coping with the tragedy.
"We just put our trust in God, and He is going to lead us the right way. It will be sad not to see the school bus stop and pick the kids up," Helt said.
Firefighters also expressed their sorrow for the family and community.
"The school districts lost four children. Think of the teachers and all the family involved in this," said Assistant Fire Chief for the Lake Ozark Fire Department, Matt Birdsley
The house is a total loss, and the cause is still under investigation. Three of the boys went to Lake Ozark Heritage Elementary School.
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LAKE OZARK, Mo. — Authorities say four brothers were found dead inside a house destroyed by fire near the Lake of the Ozarks.
Lake Ozark Fire Protection District Assistant Chief Matt Birdsley said in a news release that firefighters rushed to the home just before 1 a.m. Thursday.
Lake Ozark Chief Mark Amsinger said when firefighters arrived at the home, three sides of it had collapsed. The fire was so intense responders couldn’t immediately get inside.
Fire crews didn’t know if anyone was home when they arrived. A neighbor told them the family’s vehicle wasn’t there and they suspected the family wasn’t home.
Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. Officials soon found out that four children were inside the home. He said the children’s parents arrived as the fire was raging. It’s not clear where they had been.
The four children, along with two family pets, died in the fire. They were identified as 14-year-old Tyler Otto, 8-year-old Carson, 5-year-old Max and 4-year-old Levi.
State fire marshal investigator Steve Grass said it’s unlikely a cause will be determined because the damage was too extensive. But investigators do not suspect foul play.
Investigators didn’t find any smoke detectors, but Grass said they might have been destroyed in the blaze.