Overland Park home heavily damaged by early-morning fire

Posted: February 26, 2020 - 10:58 a.m.

Firefighters from Overland Park and Consolidated Fire District No. 2 were called to a house fire at 6900 Horton Street just after 3 a.m. Wednesday.

Crews arriving on the scene reported heavy fire visible from the front and side of the single-story home.

Overland Park Media Manager Jason Rhodes says the resident of the home was able to escape safely before firefighters arrived.

Scene video provided by the Overland Park Fire Department

"Firefighters went to work attacking fire in the front rooms of the home while additional crews searched to be sure there were not other occupants," Rhodes said. "It took firefighters about 20 minutes to bring the fire under control."

The resident told fire investigators that they awoke to the sound of fire and got out.

"Excessive contents made the home difficult to navigate," Rhodes said. "It's unknown if the home had working smoke alarms."

The home sustained significant fire and smoke damage. No injuries were reported and the exact cause of the fire remains under investigation.

The displaced resident will be staying with family members according to Rhodes.

Media notification available

All comments are moderated. Inappropriate and/or abusive comments will not be published. More information.

VIDEO: Homemade fireworks and hoarding complicate firefighters efforts in JoCo house fire

Posted: June 18, 2013 - 3:23am
Updated: June 18, 2013 - 6:02am

Overland Park firefighters were called to respond on a house fire shortly before 2 a.m. Tuesday, in the 8800 block of Westbrooke Drive. The address is near the intersection of 88th Terrace and Farley Street.

Crews arrived to report flames visible from a basement window on the front side of the single story home. As those crews entered the home they found that a resident had been hoarding items inside several rooms.

A fire in the basement was knocked down within about 20 minutes. Crews found that the fire had extended to the first floor. As crews worked to make access to the fire, piles of debris became a problem.

Aerial image of the area
Click image to view larger

Radio traffic reported three to four foot piles of material in several rooms of the home. The piles made it difficult for crews to check the integrity of the floor and to fully extinguish the fire quickly.

A resident reported a room on the first floor was being used to store some homemade fireworks and ammunition. Firefighters backed out of the house when some of those items began to discharge.

As of this report, crews are more than one hour and 20 minutes into the incident and they remain on the scene. Incident command reported the fire to be under control at 3:17 a.m.. Command reported "fire out" at 3:32 a.m..

A news release from the Overland Park Fire Department says the residents of the home awoke to the smell of smoke. Four residents were able to evacuate safely prior to the arrival of firefighters. One resident was treated for minor burns. The home suffered fire damage to the basement and first floor, with significant smoke damage throughout the house.

Investigators believe that the home did not have any working smoke alarms. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Stay with Operation 100 News on this blog and on Twitter for the latest details as they become available. Remember where you heard this news first, Operation 100 News, reporting the news to the public as it breaks.

Media notification available

All comments are moderated. Inappropriate and/or abusive comments will not be published. More information.