Parsons firefighters extinguished two fires early Wednesday morning in houses across the street from each other on Stevens. The fires are considered suspicious.
The first call came at 1:25 a.m. for the first call at a vacant and red-tagged home at 2905 Stevens. The second report came from a Parsons Police Department officer patrolling the area and saw smoke coming from an empty house at 2900 Stevens at 5:11 a.m. Wednesday.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the fires, which started in bedrooms in each house. The fires caused a limited amount of damage as they were discovered quickly.
Fire Chief Brad Boss said the house at 2905 Stevens had been red-tagged by the city for about two years. Red tagged means that the house is unsafe for occupancy and that it’s on a list to be razed once legal channels are followed.
A heavy rain was falling at the time of the first fire. The ownership of the house at 2905 Stevens is not known. One view of the property data showed one name and another view showed a second name. The house at 2900 Stevens, which was vacant at the time but had active utilities, is owned by Sloane and Wade Wilson.
The Kansas Fire Marshal’s Office is helping to investigate the cause of the fires.
