CHARLOTTE -- Two people and a dog are dead after a house fire early Thursday morning in east Charlotte.

It happened in the 8300 block of Wingfield Lane near the intersection of Idlewild Road and East W.T. Harris Boulevard.            

Heavy flames had engulfed the house by the time firefighters arrived. 

Family members say Dennis and Susan Swofford lived in the home.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.