Harrisonville blaze destroys Dollar Tree, damages several businesses
A multiple-alarm fire destroyed a Dollar Tree store in Harrisonville and damaged several other businesses Thursday in a strip mall.
The fire in the 1900 block of Missouri 291 was reported at 6:41 p.m. and extinguished by about 9:30 p.m., with several hours of cleanup afterward, said Harrisonville Fire Chief Larry Francis.
Joe Price, who lives near the Dollar Tree, could see the blaze from his home on South Prettyman Road.
“(Firefighters) knocked the flames down pretty quick,” Price said. “But smoke was coming out of the front and back door. There was a tremendous plume of smoke.”
Francis said fire investigators were on the scene Friday trying to determine the cause. The department doesn’t yet have a damage estimate.
“It will take quite a while to calculate that,” Francis said.
Fire officials believe the blaze started in a storage area of the Dollar Tree. Water damaged two businesses next door, and other businesses in the mall had smoke damage.
Francis said crews and equipment from Central Cass, West Peculiar, South Metro, Pleasant Hill and West Dolan fire protection districts and from Lee’s Summit Fire Department provided mutual aid.
No injuries were reported, he said.
A payday loan service, Advance America, is located adjacent to the Dollar Tree, and Lt. Chris Osterberg with the Harrisonville Police Department said firefighters forced entry through its main door to contain the blaze.
No one was inside Advance America when emergency personnel arrived. “Cash Advance is going to be the worst with water and smoke damage,” Osterberg said, referring to businesses other than the Dollar Tree located in the strip mall.
Osterberg added that a two-hour firewall was constructed at the north end of the Dollar Tree, which helped to prevent the fire from spreading.
Other businesses affected by the fire in Harrisonville Crossings:
▪ Fantastic Sam’s
▪ Cash Advance
▪ GNC
▪ Rent A Center
▪ Angie’s Hot Tan Cafe
▪ Connect Hearing
▪ El Mezcal Mexican Restaurant
This story was originally published October 28, 2016 at 1:36 PM with the headline "Harrisonville blaze destroys Dollar Tree, damages several businesses."