By Assistant Chief Jim Eden
Lee’s Summit Fire Department

LEE’S SUMMIT, MO– On February 23, 2023, at 10:47 pm, the Lee’s Summit Fire Department responded to a reported structure fire in a duplex at NW Maple Street and NW Main Street. The reporting party was a duplex resident who discovered a fire in the neighboring unit.  

When the fire department arrived, fire was visible from the front, side, and roof of one side of the single-story duplex. The reporting occupant was outside.

Firefighters attacked the fire from the outside, then went inside to complete extinguishment and search the building. The fire was under control by 11:20 pm. A check of the neighboring unit found light smoke, but no fire spread past the fire barrier separating the duplex. The occupant of the fire unit was located in a nearby parking lot and taken by ambulance to a Metro area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. 

The fire caused heavy damage to one side of the duplex. The incident is considered suspicious and is under investigation by the Lee’s Summit Fire Department, Lee’s Summit Police Department, and the Missouri State Fire Marshal’s Office.