Rock Valley, Iowa — A commercial storage building was damaged in a fire in the early hours of Friday, February 26, 2021, in Rock Valley.
According to Rock Valley Fire Chief Brent Eshuis, about 3:50 a.m., the Rock Valley and Hull fire departments were called to the report of a storage building fire across from Van Maanen’s Radio Shack in the southwest part of Rock Valley.
The chief says the fire department saw the southwest corner of the building on fire as they approached the scene. He says the fire extended into a number of units and burned across the top of two or three stalls. He says they were locked, so they had to saw them open. Eshuis tells us that they were able to get ahead of the fire, so part of the building will need to be redone, but it was not a total loss.
Eshuis says no injuries were reported.
He says an officer from the Fire Marshal’s office investigated, and says while the fire did not appear suspicious, the cause is officially “undetermined.”
Chief Eshuis reports that one of the units had a motorcycle in it. With the destroyed contents and the damage to the building, he estimated there might be $60,000 to $70,000 in damage.
He says the firefighters who responded were on the scene until 6:25 a.m., or about two hours and thirty-five minutes. The Rock Valley Ambulance Squad also assisted on the scene.