KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Independence Fire Department announced Thursday morning that preliminary findings have determined that an apartment fire in the 600 block of Quail Creek Drive on July 4 was caused by fireworks.
“This is an important reminder to our residents to properly dispose of firework debris,” Independence Fire Chief Doug Short said. “Please make sure all fireworks and punks are out by immersing them in water before you put them in the trash. Always shoot fireworks away from structures. And follow the instructions on the packaging."
Independence fire crews have been very active in taking calls since the start of July, averaging 83 calls per day between July 1-5.
"Between July 1-5, we saw eight structure fires – with three on July 5 alone," Short said. "We generally average 1-2 structure fires a week."
According to Short, the large number of calls has negatively impacted both firefighters and fire inspectors.
"This has challenged our firefighters as they battle back-to-back fires and triple-digit heat indexes outside of the fire," Short said. "Further, this has delayed findings on investigations as our Fire Inspectors have had to review multiple sites in a short period of time."
This investigation is still ongoing.
