BREAKING NEWS: Firefighters battle roof fire at Lee’s Summit North

The Lee’s Summit Fire Department on Friday extinguished a roof fire at Lee’s Summit North High School.

According to a statement from the fire department, firefighters responded to the school, 901 N.E. Douglas St., at 12:49 p.m. after the building’s maintenance staff discovered smoke in school’s field house and a small fire burning near the ceiling. The school’s alarm system was activated and the building was evacuated.

When the fire department arrived, nothing was visible from outside the high school. Firefighters entered the building to find the field house filling with smoke and a small fire burning in a void space between the roof of the field house and the commons area. After firefighters accessed the roof, the void space was opened up and the fire was extinguished with minimal damage to the building.

The fire was under control by 1:21 p.m. But firefighters remained on scene for more than an hour to confirm the fire was extinguished and remove smoke from the building.

The fire was contained to an approximately 10-square-foot area of the roof. An investigation determined that combustible material in a void space along the edge of the roof was ignited by the roofer’s torch. A roofing contractor had been working in the area shortly before noon, using a propane torch to apply roofing membrane. The crew had already completed work for the day when the fire was discovered.

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