Police advise residents along I-470 evacuate due to grass fire near Raytown Road | KCUR 89.3

Kansas City police asked residents near Raytown Road and I-470 to consider evacuating because of a fire that is spreading rapidly in the area.

“Please be vigilant if you live nearby and avoid the area,” read a tweet from the department.

Residents in the Highview Estates neighborhood should consider evacuating for their own safety, said a statement from police spokeswoman Donna Drake, who wrote that the blaze is believed to have started as a mulch fire that grew rapidly due to strong winds and conditions. dry.

Drake said her department was first called to the area just after 11 a.m

“Officers are in the area knocking on doors to notify residents,” Drake said.

A traffic alert from Kansas City County of the Missouri Department of Transportation indicated that I-470 traffic is closed between I-49 and Missouri Highway 50.

KC Scout cameras in the area showed long lines of cars swerving north and south along the road.

Traffic on I-470 resumed around 4:45 p.m., although the Raytown Road exits remained closed.

Photos from the Missouri Highway Patrol showed the fire had spread to both sides of the highway and visibility along the road was poor.

“These … are small examples of the challenges with proper control during strong wind gusts,” read a tweet by the Highway Patrol.

According to a tweet from the Kansas City, Missouri Fire Department, crews from Raytown and Lee’s Summit were also battling multiple related fires.

This is a developing story and may be updated.