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NC fire departments rally to honor 4-year-old boy killed in blaze

Several local fire departments banded together recently to honor a South Carolina boy who dreamed of growing up to be a firefighter before he was killed this week in a house fire along with three of his relatives.

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Several local fire departments from throughout the Carolinas banded together recently to honor a South Carolina boy who dreamed of growing up to be a firefighter before he was killed this week in a house fire along with three of his relatives.

James Raugh, 4, died on Jan. 8 in a fire along with his father, Nathan, and siblings Jalissa and Jordan, when a blaze swept through their McCormick, S.C., home, according to an obituary for the family. It was not immediately clear how the fire started or if anyone else was injured in the blaze. The funeral for the family was scheduled for Friday in Greenwood, S.C.

The boy had talked about serving as a firefighter when he grew up.

T.J. Johnson, a volunteer firefighter for the Four Oaks, N.C., fire department, was James' cousin. Johnson took to social media to post about the tragedy, asking fellow Carolina firefighters to "send James on duty" with as many fire departments as possible between Jan. 8 and Jan. 12.

"It can even be just a sticky note in your cruiser, tanker or ambulance," Johnson wrote in his post, asking fellow first responders to use the #JRaughOnDuty to capture the tribute.

Several departments, including Rocky Mount, Robeson County and others, agreed to the request and lit up social media with their pictures.

James and his siblings' survivors include their mother, Brittany Raugh, and grandparents.

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