Family of 5 killed in Thurston County house fire

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A family of five, including three children, died in a house fire in rural Thurston County early Saturday morning. To view video coverage from King 5 News, to read and watch more, click here

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office (TCSO) said deputies and West Thurston Fire were dispatched to a blaze in the 8800 block of Sherman Valley Road SW at around 6:30 a.m. on January 21.

Authorities arrived at the scene to find a home “completely engulfed” in flames with five people inside, the TCSO said.

A minor who was visiting the house managed to make it out alive. Fire departments across the county were dispatched to the location, but the family had already died.

TCSO detectives and fire investigators from West Thurston Fire, Southeast Thurston Fire, and ATF (The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) are working to determine the cause of the fire.

Sheriff Derek Sanders announced on Facebook that a GoFundMe page had been created for the victims’ relatives.

The GoFundMe page identified the parents as Steven and Destiny Cox, who had three children.

“Destiny leaves behind one child, who fortunately wasn't home the day of the fire,” the page reads. “As a family we are grieving for his losses in unimaginable ways, and hope to create a strong relationship and financial network to care for him in the absence of his mother, step-father, and siblings.”

Sanders called on the community to support the Cox family.

“The Sheriff’s Office has extended every resource we can towards the family during this time,” he said in a video uploaded to Facebook.

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