Kansas City firefighters die in collapse at apartment fire

When firefighters first arrived, Newsy’s partners at KSHB report they saw the smoke and fire in the building and called for backup.

The fire chief says they were in a “defensive mode” when the fragile building began to crumble around them.

Firefighters in Wichita mourn the tragic death of two Kansas City firefights.

The condition of the two injured firefighters wasn’t immediately clear.

Taylor said there were no code violations or structural issues reported to the city about the Independence Avenue building. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

Both Leggio and Mesh were pronounced dead at the hospital after nurses, paramedics and doctors tried to revive them.

When the wall collapsed, it pushed debris out 30 feet from the building, trapping four firefighters, Berardi said.

It’s been seven years since the last KCFD firefighter to die in the line of duty.

“You wind up sharing absolutely everything you have with these folks and before you know it, they’re just as important as your own family”, he said.

Mesh leaves a wife and four young daughters, as well as many family members. “The fire department family will help the families through”.

Firefighters are still battling hotspots, but the fire is under control, Berardi said.

The two other injured firefighters worked on Pumper 23 out of Station 23.

“We’re all firefighters. We have the same kind of job”, said Fire Marshal Brad Crisp. Ross said. “Sometimes things happen that are out of our control but we do try to take every preventative measure to make it as safe as possible for our firefighters”. Crews had already evacuated the building Monday night and were fighting the blaze from the exterior.

“If there’s going to be funeral services where there’s going to be fire department honors, we’ll probably send a few representatives of our fire department honor guard up there to represent the Wichita Fire Department”, Crisp said.