Aug. 2--A 65-year-old man was killed Friday afternoon in a house fire in the 4200 block of Euclid Avenue.
Fire crews were called to the scene shortly before 1 p.m. Two other people escaped without injury.
The victim was found on the upper deck, outside of a second-floor bedroom. His name has not been released. T
wo people who were on the lower level of the house said they smelled smoke and looked in the kitchen but did not see anything on fire, said Kansas City Deputy Fire Chief James Dean.
They went upstairs and saw heavy fire coming one of the bedrooms. They called 911.
Christopher Larson said he was driving near the area when he saw the roof of the house on fire. He said flames shot through the attic.
"It really wasn't even that big," Larson said. Larson said he pulled over and called 911. He saw a man walk onto the balcony of the burning home screaming. "I tried to communicate with him but he was unresponsive," he said.
Jose Torres, 31, of Kansas City said he and his wife were southbound on Bruce Watkins Parkway when they noticed smoke and flames pouring out of the two-story house. Torres said he grabbed a ladder and tried to help the victim escape.
He punched the wooden railing along the balcony but the smoke and flames were too much. Torres, who sustained a burned forearm, said the victim remained on the upper deck as fire crews arrived moments later.
Larson said it looked like the victim fainted. It took crews about five minutes to get the blaze under control. It was contained to the second floor.
Investigators from the Kansas City Police Department bomb and arson unit were called to the scene.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation on Friday, Dean said.
Several firefighters sustained minor burns, but nothing serious, he said.
___ (c)2019 The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Mo.)
Visit The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Mo.) at www.kansascity.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
