17 November 2023
WICHITA, Kan.(KSNW) — A house in east Wichita is being considered a total loss after a fire Thursday evening.
According to Wichita Fire Department Battalion Chief Terry Gresham, they received a call a little after 6 p.m. for the report of a house fire in the 5900 block of E. Castle Dr.
Gresham says when crews arrived, they were met with heavy smoke.
“It was actually hard for the crews to figure out which house at first,” said Gresham.
The house had a heavy fire coming out of one of the front windows and the side, which used to be a garage.
“They put a window there, and we had heavy fire coming out of that. Shortly after crews pulled up, the windows fell, and that’s why we had the heavy fire,” said Gresham.
Grasham says crews attacked the fire from the front and were able to push it back, contain it and knock it down.
“Crews took a pretty good beaten as they were pushing in,” said Gresham.
According to Gresham, two kids were found outside when crews arrived. He says because of a language barrier, crews weren’t sure if anyone was inside or not.
“So, we did an aggressive search, crews searched and gave us a primary really quick,” said Gresham.
Gresham says they are now just chasing hot spots.
“With this much fire in the house, there’s, you’re gonna be chasing it for a while,” said Gresham.
Gresham said the house is probably a total loss and that the Red Cross has been notified.
No injuries were reported.