INDIAN POINT, Mo. -- A fire that swept through an apartment building forced seven families out of their homes on Tuesday night. Southern Stone County firefighters rushed to the fire on Bentree Lane about 10:15 p.m. Flames were shooting through the roof when they arrived.
Fire Marshal Mike Creswell, determined the cause to be "improperly discarded smoking materials." He says the fire started in a sofa after a cigarette ignited it.
Crews aggressively attacked the fire and stopped it from spreading to the rest of the building, although the fire had already impacted adjacent apartments, firefighters said.
Branson and Western Taney County firefighters helped put out the fire, which took about three hours, according to a news release from the Southern Stone County Fire Protection District. More than 30 firefighters fought the fire.
Fifteen residents were impacted. The American Red Cross helped them find shelter.
