Probe continues as funeral is held for fire victims

HOLTS SUMMIT — Investigators say they don't know how long it will take to determine a cause for a fire that killed three children in the central Missouri town of Holts Summit.

Meanwhile, funeral services for the young siblings, ages 6, 4 and 2, were to be held Sunday afternoon at a Jefferson City church.

An autopsy found the children died of carbon monoxide poisoning from the fire early Friday morning.

Scott Brooks, chief of the Holts Summit Fire Protection District, said combustible gas might have fed the fire. But he said he had no indication that a utility supply started the fire.

A neighbor said he saw a fireball at the rear of the house as firefighters worked to contain the blaze. He questioned whether it was from a ruptured natural gas line.