Davie County Sheriff J.D. Hartman told reporters that investigators believe that a father, mother and their two young children died in the house fire.

Hartman said autopsies could help investigators determine the cause of their deaths.

A driver passing the house saw smoke, drove to Cooleemee’s fire department and reported the fire, according to the sheriff. Firefighters found the four bodies when they entered the house to extinguish the blaze.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation.