Westport bar damaged by fire Tuesday morning; cause under investigation, KCFD says
Update: The owner of the building that houses Buzzard Beach was on hand to witness the fire and spoke with The Star. That story is posted here.
The Kansas City Fire Department responded to a reported blaze Tuesday morning in the heart of the Westport entertainment district.
Emergency vehicles were present at Buzzard Beach, where smoke was seen billowing from the roof of the bar shortly after 10:30 a.m. Tuesday in the 4100 block of Pennsylvania Avenue.
The fire was called in at 10:21 a.m. and crews arrived within four minutes, said Jason Spreitzer, a spokesman for the fire department. Flames were visible from the second floor of the bar.
At least two dozen firefighters and three trucks extinguished the blaze by 11:10, he said, though firefighters remained to put out hot spots.
No one was inside at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported, Spreitzer said. None of the adjoining businesses suffered fire damage.
“Any time we’re dealing with these old buildings, we have to be really concerned with fire spread,” he said. “If the fire gets to these voids, it’ll travel from building to building.”
The cause of the fire is still under investigation. Spreitzer noted the the building contains large amounts of old wood, which is a risk factor.
This story was originally published May 31, 2022 at 10:49 AM.
