Causes for two overnight fires in Holts Summit are under investigation.
The first was reported at 10:12 p.m. Tuesday night when a firefighter from the Holts Summit Fire Protection District was driving in the 600 block of South Summit Drive and saw flames coming from the window of a residence.
Firefighters from the Holts Summit Fire Protection District, with assistance from the New Bloomfield Fire Protection District, were able to bring the fire under control within 10 minutes.
Once the fire was extinguished, investigators from the Holts Summit Police Department and the Office of the State Fire Marshall began investigating the cause of the fire. At this time the cause of the fire is unknown and an initial damage estimate places the damage at around $30,000.
Sgt. Marc Haycook with the Holts Summit Police Department stated that this is an open investigation and they are looking for a person that may be able to provide more details.
"At this time a subject is being sought in connection to the fire," Haycook said in an email. "It is likely this subject is only a witness, but until this person is located or comes forward to be interviewed by investigators we won't be able to rule out their involvement."
The second fire was reported at 2:43 a.m. when Callaway Joint Communications received a 911 call from a resident off of State Road OO, just outside of the Holts Summit city limits, who reported hearing multiple explosions.
While enroute to the area, a responding deputy from the Callaway County Sheriff's Department observed flames near the Pro Food Systems warehouse in the 100 block of Commerce Drive. Two tractor trailers parked at the loading dock caught fire and are a complete loss, according to a press release from Pro Food Systems.
Firefighters from the Holts Summit Fire Protection District, with assistance from the New Bloomfield Fire Protection District, were able to bring the fire under control within 30 minutes.
Security footage shows the fire stated in one of the trucks and later ignited the second. Shawn Burcham, CEO of Pro Food Systems, said no foul play is suspected. Sgt. Marc Haycook with the Holts Summit Police Department said in an email that because no one was on the property during the incident, "the scene is treated carefully to preserve anything of evidentiary value" in order to "assist investigators in determining the cause of the fire."
Haycook and a spokesperson for Pro Food Systems both stated they are unaware what was inside the tractor trailers.
The building didn't suffer any structural damage and only had minor damage to the face of the building at the loading docks.
Once the fire was extinguished, investigators from the Holts Summit Police Department and the Office of the State Fire Marshall began investigating the cause of the fire. At this time the cause of the fire is unknown and an initial damage estimate places the damage at around $500,000.
Anyone with information about these fires is asked to contact the Holts Summit Police Department at 573" 896"4678 or Callaway County Crime Stoppers at 573"592"2474.