A fierce fire early Saturday killed Matt and Rebecca Orr, both 46; and three of their sons, Benjamin, 18; Jeremiah, 16; and Kyle, 14. Another son, Justin, 23, escaped with a burned right hand and smoke inhalation.
Olathe fire department spokesman Mike Hall said Sunday that investigators have not determined a cause of the blaze, which struck about 4:50 a.m. Saturday, but it appeared to be accidental.
Hall said much of the damage was downstairs in the back of the house. The victims were found on both floors of the two-story house.
Justin Orr ran to a neighbor's home for help before running back to try and help his family. The Orrs' other child, Kameron, a sophomore at the University of Kansas, was in Lawrence at the time of the fire.
The Orrs' second daughter, Melissa, 21, died last year of a non-malignant brain tumor discovered when she was a child.
The Orrs were faithful members of the Olathe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said Ken Ross, a church leader.
Ross said the two surviving children were in shock but were trying to cope.
``Both of those kids have a great deal of faith,'' Ross said. ``We have a belief that families are eternal. We're separated in death, but we'll be united. ... That will help them. They are very close and have a huge extended family. They will be well taken care of.''
Ross described the family as musical, computer-oriented and active in the church. They sometimes went Christmas caroling and knocked on the doors of ``whoever needed to be cheered up,'' he said.
Matt Orr worked as a supervisor in the software department at Sprint. He also was a Sunday school teacher for high school students.
``He was a very responsible and hard-working guy,'' said Matt's father, Roger Orr. ``...His children had some of those characteristics.''
Rebecca Orr decided to become a physician after Melissa was diagnosed with a brain tumor in second grade. She also volunteered at the church's family history library in Olathe.
Benjamin Orr was a senior at Olathe South High School; Jeremiah was a sophomore at the school and Kyle Orr was a ninth-grader at Frontier Trail Junior High in Olathe.
A few hours after the fatal blaze, students from Olathe South were going to the fire scene. Fire officials called Phil Clark, the school's principal, and suggested that he set up a counseling area at the school.
A team of counselors and other support staff went to the school, and some students came to express their grief, Clark said. More students and some school staff members assembled at several houses in the area.
Counselors, psychologists and social workers will be at the school on Monday, he said.
``Sadly, we have experience in responding to tragic situations,'' he said. ``But it never gets any easier. Every life is precious. Every loss hurts immeasurably.''
