photo by: Kim Callahan

Fire damage is visible on a unit at Quail Creek Apartments, 2111 Kasold Dr., Thursday, July 5, 2018.

Firefighters had to use a ladder to rescue some residents from an overnight fire at an apartment building in southwest Lawrence.

No residents or firefighters were hurt but several pet cats died from smoke inhalation from the fire, which was caused by unattended cooking, said Division Chief and Fire Marshal James King of Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical.

The apartment occupants called 911 to report that their kitchen was on fire just before 12:30 a.m. Thursday in Building B of Quail Creek Apartments, 2111 Kasold Drive, King said.

He said arriving firefighters could see smoke and fire. They started an “aggressive” interior attack on the blaze and used a ladder to rescue occupants on the third-floor balcony at the rear of the building, King said.

King said he did not yet have a damage and loss estimate prepared Thursday afternoon.

He said three apartment units in the building were damaged by fire, smoke or water, displacing roughly eight to 10 people. He said some units also had minor damage due to firefighters forcing their way in.

The rental office at the site was closed Thursday afternoon. When reached by phone about the fire, a representative of the complex’s owners, Cherry Hill Properties, told a reporter that “we’re not commenting on it right now.”

A van belonging to a restoration service was parked at one of the units Thursday afternoon, and a note on a door said that residents affected by the fire could contact that restoration company.

— Journal-World managing editor Kim Callahan contributed to this report.

Quail Creek Apartments

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