A mother and her 14-year-old son died in a fast-moving house fire in New Jersey on Wednesday morning.

Bobby Ferrell went back into the burning house to try and to save his mother, 53-year-old Michelle Ferrell. But both were trapped inside and died.

Witnesses said a passing motorist reported the fire.

Witnesses said they saw three people inside get out and watched in horror as one ran back inside.

Police said when they arrived at the scene and tried to enter the house they had to turn away because of the choking smoke.

Another son, 15-year-old James Ferrell and 23-year-old daughter Emily McManus escaped with minor injuries, authorities said. They suffered from smoke inhalation and were taken to Virtua Hospital in Mount Holly.

Springfield Fire Chief Brian Kokotajlo was one of the first responders on the scene.

"There was heavy fire in the rear of the house and heavy smoke in the front of the house upon arrival," Kokotajlo said.

The four-alarm blaze started just after 4:30 a.m. and was brought under control by 7:10 a.m., fire officials said. The home is located on the 2400 block of Monmouth Road in Burlington County.

Authorities brought all the equipment they could to fight it, 20 fire companies and 150 firefighters.

"There''s a 53-year-old female victim who was found on the second story of the house and her 14-year-old son who actually got out of the house, and then heard his mother screaming and ran right back to try and save her," New Jersey State Police Captain Austin O''Malley said.

Bobby Ferrell made it to the second floor of the home where he died trying to rescue his mother.

The brothers attended Northern Burlington County Regional High School. Bobby played football. Officials brought in grief counselors to help students and staff cope.

"Bobby was a very, very respected, a lot of friends at Northern Burlington, an active student athlete," School Superintendent Dr. James Sarruda said. "Classmates throughout the building who were close to Bob, you know, needed to speak to people about the issue."

Ashley Harting attended school with Bobby Ferrell, and lived across the street from the fire scene where he died.

"I started crying," Harting said.

Water, in a rural area, is a problem for fire fighters. They trucked in supplies but it still took more than two and a half hours to bring the fire under control.

By then, the 100-year-old wood-framed house with a tin roof was nearly destroyed. It was only then that the bodies of Michelle and Bobby Ferrell could be removed from the charred debris.

State authorities are still investigating. But they said they believe the fire may have started in a clothes dryer inside the home.

There was no word on if the house had working smoke detectors.