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Fire that killed Slidell family started outside living room window

Fire officials said that the home had only one smoke detector and it was not working at the time of the fire.

SLIDELL, La. — Fire investigators say a deadly fire in Slidell caused too much damage to determine what exactly sparked the flames that left four people, including two children dead on Wednesday.

The four family members were killed in the fire that started around 1 a.m. on Constellation Street in the Eden Isles neighborhood. The family members were identified as 33-year-old Phoenix Lousteau, her husband, 40-year-old Stephen Lousteau and their two daughters, 5-year-old Payton Lousteau and 10-year-old MacKynzie Lousteau.

Fire officials said that the home had only one smoke detector and it was not working at the time of the fire.

"It's a tough day. I've been here 34 years and we have not lost a family like this in a residential home fire in my 34 years. It's horrible," St. Tammany Fire Protection District No. 1 Fire Chief Chris Kaufmann said.

Fire investigators agree that the fire started on the outside rear of the home, just outside of a living room window. Some possible ignition sources that could not be ruled out included outside decorative lights on the home’s wooden deck, electrical lines running under the deck and a power strip found in the area. 

Firefighters were able to rule out a barbeque pit and attached propane bottle, as well as a crawfish burner without an attached propane cylinder as where the fire started.

“Unfortunately, with the amount of damage sustained to this portion of the home, investigators were not able to scientifically determine exactly which ignition source was responsible for this tragic fire,” Kaufmann wrote in a news release on Friday. 

The exact cause of the fire will be listed as undetermined, the fire department said.

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