DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities in northeast Iowa say the bodies of five people have been retrieved from a house that was completely destroyed by an early morning fire. The house was damaged so badly it could be difficult to collect enough evidence to determine the cause of the fire. The blaze left just a charred pile of smoking metal and siding where the house once stood in Arlington, a small city about 125 miles northeast of Des Moines.

The state fire marshal says it appears the bodies are those of three adults and two children. Their remains will be sent to the state medical examiner’s office for positive identification. An official cause of death for the five will not be available until autopsies are completed.