Duplex fire under investigation in Liberal

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Firefighters had to take extra precautions as they battled a duplex fire in Liberal early Sunday. Residents in the north apartment were evacuating, but fire crews did not know if people were in the south apartment.

The call came in at 1:36 a.m. of a building fire in the 100 block of S. Grant Avenue.

Police officers and firefighters arrived at 1:40 a.m. and saw a lot of flames in the south apartment. The people in the north apartment were in the process of evacuating.

Firefighters first had to clear enough of the fire from the exterior so that the people in the north apartment had a path to safety.

Crews got into the south apartment and began searching. No one was there.

From that point, the firefighters could focus on putting the fire out. They got it under control within minutes.

The south apartment has extensive fire, smoke and water damage. The north apartment has smoke damage. The City of Liberal says the entire building is uninhabitable.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

In addition to the Liberal Fire Department, other agencies assisted: the Liberal Police Department, Southern Pioneer Electric, Black Hills Energy, the Liberal Water and Building Departments, and the Liberal / Seward County Emergency Communications Center.