Investigation into fatal Fayette county fire continues

State fire officials are still trying to determine what caused a fire that killed three members of a rural Arlington family four hours into the new year.

Iowa Fire Marshal Ray Reynolds said the fire that killed Gerald Rodenberg, 73, and his two grandsons, 6-year-old Henry Rodenberg and 5- year-old Ian Rodenberg, may have been caused by a wood-burning stove, an unattended space heater or smoking materials.

“This is a tremendous tragedy for the family and community,” he said.

The boys' parents, Ian Patrick Rodenberg, 32, and Julia Rodenberg, 30, and their 9-year-old brother Christopher escaped the fire with non- life-threatening injuries, officials said.

The Rodenberg children were taught at home, according to officials at the nearby Starmont Community Schools.

The fire, which is not considered suspicious, quickly destroyed the Rodenbergs' residence, two older manufactured homes linked by a covered walkway, Reynolds said.

Arlington Mayor Don Handel, a member of the Arlington Fire Department, said firefighters were scheduled to meet Monday night with grief counselors.

“It's harder when it's people you know. It's going to take awhile to get over it,” he said.

Handel said members of St. John's Lutheran Church in Arlington were collecting clothing and household goods to assist the stricken family.

Cash donations can be sent to Farmers Savings Bank, P.O. Box 22, Arlington 50606. Checks should be made out to Duane Landers, a relative who lives at the same farmstead 3 miles south of Arlington where the fire occurred.

Reynolds said he believes the home had smoke alarms but that they were not operative.

While all homes should be equipped with working smoke alarms, they are especially important in homes with alternative heating systems such as wood-burning stoves and space heaters, he said.

“The real message is that people killed by fires usually die at home and at night,” he said

In its toll on a single family, Saturday's fire was reminiscent of a house fire that killed four siblings - Abigail Zeil, 14; Tyler Hansen, 8; Megan Hansen, 7; and Haylee Hansen, 3 - on Jan. 14, 2009, in a rural home near Greeley about 25 miles distant.