Oregon police discovered a harrowing scene where a mother and her three young kids were found dead inside a building in an apparent isolated incident.
The incident comes after deputies responded to a home in Cornelius at around 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday following a 911 call and found four people deceased. The individuals were identified as a 37-year-old woman and her three kids, aged two, five, and seven years.
Mother and Three Kids Found Dead
School officials said that the five-year-old child was a kindergartener and that the seven-year-old was a second-grader at Cornelius Elementary School. Deputy David Huey, a spokesperson for the sheriff's office, said that so far, no arrests have been made in connection with the incident.
Authorities believe that the deaths appear to be part of an isolated incident and that there is no danger to the public. During a media briefing, Huey was seen visibly emotional talking about the incident, saying that it was difficult to talk about, according to ABC News.
Cornelius Police Chief Mitch Coley said that the community has been shaken to its core following the news of the incident. He added that the investigation is still ongoing, which means that details of the matter are still limited for now.
The police chief said the incident marks a deeply emotional time for everyone in Oregon, including neighbors, friends, and first responders. Coley asked the community to come together with compassion and care.
An Isolated Incident
The person who talked to 911 called authorities after returning to his home and finding the bodies. Neighbors also said that the family just recently returned to the home after they were displaced by a fire, People reported.
One neighbor, Casey Dennis, said that the mother was taking her kids to school back and forth every day, which made them seem like just another family in the neighborhood. They added that a couple of months ago, the family suffered from a fire that broke out in their former home, which cut off their electricity.
Others added that the victims were somewhat isolated in the community because of a language barrier but described the kids as always smiling and waving to them. Another neighbor, Heather Murphy, said that while the family was not part of normal communications in the neighborhood, they were still a part of the community nonetheless.
Murphy also said that the family's children all had bright and smiling faces and that they were very memorable to the community, as per KKTV.
