Apartment fire injures one

Lawrence Fire and Medical Crews work together to secure the scene of a fire on Friday at 2136 26th Street in Lawrence.

One person suffered a burn injury after an apartment fire that caused $60,000 in damage Friday evening.

After an original report of a medical call at 6:19 p.m. at 2136 W. 26th St., SouthPointe Apartments, Lawrence police officers noticed smoke coming from inside the building.

Officers then knocked on doors of several residents and ordered evacuation of the three-story building that stretches for about a block, said Mark Bradford, chief of Lawrence-Douglas County Fire & Medical.

An ambulance crew transported a male, who was inside the unit, to Lawrence Memorial Hospital for treatment, Bradford said. The victim was later flown by helicopter to the University of Kansas Hospital in Kansas City, Kan.

A medical crew also treated three other people for smoke inhalation, Bradford said.

Firefighters used water to extinguish the blaze in the middle floor of the apartment. After no indication that the fire had spread, police and firefighters allowed residents in unaffected apartments to return to their homes.

A vacant unit below the burned apartment sustained some water damage, Bradford said.

Investigators were trying to determine a possible cause.