OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — No serious injuries were reported when a three-alarm fire broke out Saturday afternoon at an Overland Park apartment complex.
The Overland Park Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at the Meadowlark Hill Apartment, 9121 Robinson Street.
The fire started in the basement and worked its way up through the walls into an attic.
Three-alarm fire, but there aren't any injuries thankfully. https://t.co/BL9UKhRj7R
— 41 Action News (@41actionnews) July 28, 2018
The attic’s unusual construction made it hard for firefighters to reach in battling the blaze, according to the Overland Park Fire Department.
Residents were evacuating when crews arrived, rescuing a man and his child from a second-story balcony. Two people were treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation.
It took nearly three hours for crews to get the fire under control.
Still a ton of smoke, also from the roof. pic.twitter.com/XytzK27W8m
— Tyler Navas 📹 (@navasphoto) July 28, 2018
Over time, as additions were made to the structure, layers of insulation and sheet rock were piled atop one another.
At one point, firefighters were spotted cutting through part of the roof with a chainsaw to reach pockets of fire and smoldering material.
They’re chainsawing through the side of the roof now. pic.twitter.com/K0aSMv7IeD
— Tyler Navas 📹 (@navasphoto) July 28, 2018
Crew from Consolidated Fire District No. 2, Leawood, Lenexa and Olathe battled the fire with assistance from Johnson County Med-ACT and Johnson County Emergency Communications.
The fire was contained to the building of origin, but six units suffered heavy damage and resident from six other apartments will be displaced due to disconnection of utilities, according to a release from the Overland Park Fire Department.
The Red Cross is assisting those in need and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
