Pennsylvania Teacher and Her Four Grandchildren Killed in House Fire

A teacher and her four young grandchildren have died in a house fire in what has been described as a "brutal tragedy."

The blaze broke out late Thursday night in the ranch-style home in Polk Township, Monroe County in Pennsylvania.

Rosemarie LaBarre, 53, died along with the children aged between 2 and 7, according to Monroe County Coroner Tom Yanac, WNEP reported.

LaBarre had been looking after the children while her daughter and son-in-law were out of the home.

One neighbor, Jo Roseberry, told WFMZ: "I can't believe this happened,it's just unbelievable, devastating and tears your heart out."

A GoFundMe Page set up to cover the funeral expenses for the family had raised more than $82,000 as of Saturday morning, as many wrote messages of support with their donations.

"There are no words to ease the pain you are going through," wrote one.

The fund organizer, Jessica McCormic, said that her friend Markie Ribera was dealing with the loss of her children Kathryn, Kaleb, Kristian, and Kasper, as well as her mother.

"Those four little kids were everything to her," McCormic said according to Penn Live. "It's just devastating."

She described the children as "smart, kind, loving," and "full of joy," adding that the community was rallying around to help the family.

"They don't need to be alone right now," McCormic said. "We're taking it a day at a time."

McCormic said that Ribera's husband Carlos worked on a farm. Markie Ribera was looking after him the night their Monroe County home caught fire.

She said the House of the Rock Church in Bushkill Township, where Markie Ribera serves as children's ministry director, will hold a special collection for the family and grief counselors would work with young members of the congregation.

Pleasant Valley School District Superintendent James R. Konrad issued a memo to staff which said that such a tragedy "impacts all of us."

Bethlehem Area School District Superintendent Joseph Roy said LaBarre had been a family and consumer sciences teacher at East Hills Middle School since 2008. "It is just a brutal tragedy," he said.

Photos from the scene showed extensive fire damage to a section of the home. State police said in a statement that a preliminary investigation indicated that the fire was "accidental in nature with nothing suspicious being observed."

"We have assistance for responding troopers to get through this, but our hearts go out to the family members. This is absolutely devastating just to talk about," said Trooper Anthony Petroski, "I can't imagine what the family is going through."

Newsweek has contacted Pennsylvania State Police and McCormic for comment.