Investigators are working to determine the cause of a house fire that killed three people in Glenoma early Thursday morning.
“This is a tragic situation, and we are working diligently with our public safety partners to find answers for the community,” Sheriff Rob Snaza said in a statement.
The fire was reported at 3:23 a.m. in the 100 block of Frost Creek Road in Glenoma by multiple 911 callers, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Fire personnel from Glenoma, Randle, Morton and Mossyrock responded and later requested a fire investigator and law enforcement after learning that three of the home’s residents were possibly inside the home when the fire was reported.
Sheriff’s Office personnel arrived and, after the remains of the home cooled, found three deceased individuals in the structure. The three victims were found in different areas of the house. Autopsies are scheduled for Friday.
Investigators have not yet positively identified those who died, but believe they are the three people who lived in the home.
“All the information we have is everyone who resides there is an adult,” said Chief Deputy Dusty Breen of the Sheriff’s Office.
Laura Stevens identified the three residents as members of her family — an elderly husband, his wife and their middle-aged son.
“We got the call about 7 o’clock saying the house is on fire,” she said. “We were just down here last week and everything seemed to be fine … They were perfectly fine.”
Stevens said the residents had health issues, and had lived on the property for decades.
“The sweetest people you ever met, give you the shirt off their back,” Stevens said.
Detectives are currently working with fire investigators from the city of Chehalis and the Lewis County Coroner’s Office to determine the victims’ cause and manner of death as well as the cause and origin of the fire.
“We treat all cases as serious investigations until determined otherwise,” Snaza told The Chronicle Thursday.
As of Thursday afternoon, Snaza said investigators had not yet determined an obvious cause of the fire.
“We’re not making any determinations at this point,” he said.
The Coroner’s Office will release their identities after they have been confirmed and next of kin has been notified.
Snaza said they are not aware of previous law-enforcement responses to the house that would “raise any flags.”
“We’re still doing all our fact finding,” he said.
•••
Chronicle Visuals Editor Pete Caster contributed to this story.
