By MARGO HORNER, The Mirror

One person and two dogs died early Monday during a house fire in unincorporated King County near Federal Way.

Three occupants of the house escaped the fire and were hospitalized Monday. Two occupants, a man and a woman, were treated for minor injuries at St. Francis Hospital in Federal Way. One man was in critical condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with severe burns to his face and back.

A fourth occupant, a woman who lives in the house in the 1400 block of South 276th Place, was initially missing. Fire investigators were unsure Monday morning if she was dead in the house or if she had escaped. Three initial search and rescue attempts revealed two dead dogs, but not the woman, said Donna Conner, spokeswoman for South King Fire and Rescue.

Later Monday afternoon, a body was found buried underneath debris in the house.

“We did find a body in a small family room at the back of the residence,” Conner said. “A bookcase and a couch were on top of it. It was covered by rubbish.”

The occupants’ names had not been released as of press time. Neighbors said two couples in their 40s lived in the house.

The body, burned beyond recognition, is likely to be that of the missing woman, neighbor Greg Pinches said.

“She was just a wonderful person,” he said. “She just liked to talk. She loves to talk. She could talk your ear off.

“Any time she was out front or anything she would always come over and talk. She’s just, like I said, just a wonderful person,” Pinches said.

The cause of the fire remained unknown Monday evening. Investigators obtained a search warrant to enter the house Monday afternoon. Entering the house without a warrant during an emergency is legal, Conner said. But after the fire is out and there is no imminent danger, fire investigators must obtain a warrant to re-enter the house.

Pinches, who lives across the street from the house that burned, said he awoke at about 4:15 a.m. to his neighbor banging on his door. The man told him to call 911.

Pinches said he saw the neighbor carry his girlfriend out of the burning house.

“The living room area was totally engulfed in flames,” he said. “I ran over to see if I could help, but at that point you couldn’t go in the house.”

The fire department received the call at 4:20 a.m., Conner said. The first engine responded to the scene at 4:22 a.m. The fire was already fully involved and flames were shooting out the windows and roof.

“The guys coming up I-5 could see it,” Conner said.

The fire was out by 4:48 a.m. The entire house was burned and most of what remained was blackened or ash. A house next door suffered minor fire damage.

“This is pretty extensive damage. We normally get there and stop it before it gets this big,” Conner said.

Fire crews planned to continue their investigation throughout the day Monday.

Contact Margo Horner: mhorner@fedwaymirror.com or (253) 925-5565.