KCK car shop on Southwest Boulevard has building go up in flames in two-alarm fire
A locally-owned car shop on Southwest Boulevard lost one of its buildings in a two-alarm fire in Kansas City, Kansas, Thursday, officials said.
Boulevard Tire and Service at 722 Southwest Boulevard lost its full auto service building in the blaze. Owner Blake Breeden said the fire was accidentally started by a mechanic doing welding work. The mechanics used all the fire extinguishers in the shop, in an effort to douse the flames, before evacuating.
“It just started spreading, in which case they abandoned ship, as they should have,” Breeden said. “And shortly after that, the whole place exploded.”
Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department crews were sent to Boulevard Tire and Service at 10:25 a.m., KCKFD spokesperson Scott Schaunaman said. The crews were met with heavy smoke and flames coming from the building, he said.
Firefighters fought the flames from outside the building and brought it under control within approximately 30 minutes, Schaunaman said. The fire was initially upgraded to a second alarm fire, which brought extra crews, because of how close it was to affecting nearby buildings.
One employee sustained minor superficial burns and was evaluated on scene. The building appears to be a total loss, Schaunaman said. The cause of the fire is being investigated by KCKFD.
Two power poles were also damaged and Breeden expects those to be replaced by Friday morning.
Breeden bought the business in January 2009 and built its full auto service repair center in 2012. The original building is still standing, and Breeden hopes to reopen on Monday with fewer services.
He also hopes to rebuild a full-service center, but said he must wait to receive funds from his insurance company and approval from the city.
“I‘ll get it rebuilt as fast as I can,” Breeden said. “I have no idea how long it’s gonna take at this point.”
