Firefighters quickly extinguished a blaze at an Airport Road apartment complex in Kalispell early Wednesday afternoon.  

Kalispell Fire Chief Jay Hagen said the call for a structure fire at the Courtyard Apartments complex came in at 1:18 p.m., March 11. Crews from the Kalispell, South Kalispell and Evergreen fire departments converged on the cluster of squat buildings across the street from the Kalispell Municipal Airport to find heavy black smoke pouring from a first-floor apartment, he said.  

“We got here pretty quickly. We were able to put water on it and the right amount of resources,” Hagen said.  

The fire was deemed out by 1:26 p.m. Crews remained on scene mopping up shortly after 2 p.m. 

Three people were evaluated for smoke inhalation, Hagen said. All three declined transportation to a medical facility.  

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, he said.  

Neighbor Ken Salois heard the call come in over the scanner and then the wail of approaching emergency vehicles. 

“I heard all these sirens come in and I’m trying to figure out, OK what's going on, and then the apartments over there on the south side, I saw smoke coming out of the apartment and saw the manager running,” he recalled.  

He watched as firefighters first tried to break down a door before smashing through a window.  

“... They broke some windows on the south end [of the building], I think it was a bedroom window that they broke in for the smoke to come out, so they could go in and see where the fire was at or where it started,” Salois said. 

Hagen said the cost of the damage remains unknown, but the kitchen of the apartment where the blaze originated will likely need remodeling. Officials contacted the American Red Cross on behalf of several residents, but Hagen expected that most of the inhabitants of the two-story building on the south end of the complex would be able to return home.  

Hagen said about 15 personnel were involved in dousing the blaze. Kalispell sent an engine and a ladder truck to the scene while Evergreen dispatched an engine and South Kalispell furnished a second command vehicle. Hagen said vehicles from other area agencies were en route when crews got the blaze under control.  

“We really enjoy a great partnership in this part of the valley, we had a super fast response,” Hagen said. “We really back each other up on more people-intensive incidents like this and especially when it happens during day we're able to get a nice amount of resources to get a quick stop on fires, so we really appreciate that.” 

    Fire crews mop up after fighting a blaze that broke out inside an Airport Road apartment in Kalispell on Wednesday, March 11. (Derrick Perkins/Daily Inter Lake)
  

    Firefighters mop up following a blaze inside an Airport Road apartment in Kalispell on Wednesday, March 11. (Derrick Perkins/Daily Inter Lake)