No working smoke alarms in Overland Park home where morning fire killed two: officials
An investigation of an early morning fire in Overland Park that killed two people and injured another has revealed that the residence did not have working smoke alarms, authorities said Monday.
Officials were still working Monday to determine what caused the fire, which sent crews to the 10300 block of Westgate Street. A 911 call came in around 1:30 a.m. of a structure fire with people trapped inside, authorities said.
During an interview with The Star, Fire Chief Bryan Dehner said smoke detectors save lives and that firefighters hope everyone has a working one.
“Fatalities in residential house fires are terrible events for the community and families. What we would always hope (from) folks as they’re watching us is making sure that they have a good working smoke detector,” the chief said. “If they don’t have one, give us a call and we’ll give you one for free, help you put it up.”
Firefighters arrived at the home early Monday to find significant fire showing from the two-story structure. Six people are believed to have been inside the house when the blaze started, including three teenage adults and a woman who was taken to the hospital after being rescued by family.
Firefighters were unable to reach the upstairs of the structure where the two people were killed in time, Dehner said.
Authorities had yet to identify the two killed in the fire as they were continuing to make notifications to their families on Monday afternoon. The two victims were described as being in their 30s. A Facebook post from the Kansas City alternative metal band Epocℏ identified the victims as the group’s lead singer and his wife.
Johnson County Crime Lab and the State Fire Marshals were assisting with the investigation into the cause of the fire Monday. Dehner said that is standard practice in fatal fires.
The Star’s Robert A. Cronkleton and Andrea Klick contributed to this report.
This story was originally published June 20, 2022 at 4:00 PM.
