Four members of one family and a visiting nephew were killed early Monday morning when fire damaged their one story wood frame home at 1112 Mt. Olive Avenue.
Timothy David Fulton, his wife Remondia Campbell Fulton, their sons Timothy Lamar Fulton and Robert Joshua Fulton, and a nephew Timothy Blake Dean all died when fire from an outdoor trash container ignited a dining room wall. Everyone was apparently sleeping when the fire began. The investigation indicates Mr. Fulton became aware of the fire and received burns while attempting to warn others.
A patrolling Gardendale police officer noticed smoke in the area and followed it to the Fulton residence. The fire was reported at 1:15am.
The remains of one smoke alarm were found in the residence, however, it was not in the area of the bedrooms, nor was a battery connected to it.
The investigation revealed that the Fulton and Dean families had discharged fireworks the night of the Fourth of July. After firing the fireworks, debris and been collected and placed in the plastic trash container located next to the outside dining room wall around 10:00 PM. The remainder of the Dean family left around 11:00 PM, while Timothy spent the night.
The Jefferson County Coroner's Office is conducting further examinations to determine the specific cause of death, although at this time all of victims appear to have died of smoke inhalation.