Residents of Summit Villa Lifecare in Holts Summit are scheduled to be back in their residences today after having to leave following a lightning strike to the roof of the facility Sunday evening.
"We want to say thanks so much to the community for their response to this," said nursing director Tracey Pritchett. "They made a difficult situation so much smoother."
Shortly after 5 p.m., Holts Summit Fire Protection District personnel were dispatched to the facility after lightning hit the roof, causing a fire in the attic.
Firefighters were able to contain the fire to a small portion of the attic and fully extinguish it.
Fire damage was limited to the attic space and a single room at the rear of the building.
Fifteen of the 50 residents were moved to the Best Value Inn across U.S. 54 from the Summit Villa. The rest of the residents stayed with family members.
"We were ready for dinner at the time, so everyone was close to the front door when this occurred and that made getting out faster," Pritchett said.
Late Sunday, a structural engineer came in to assess what needed to be done, and construction started with crews primarily changing out wallboard and repairing the roof.