Harris, Iowa — A fire on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, destroyed a shop and its contents near Harris.
According to Harris Fire Chief Randy Rost, the blaze, located at 1588 White Avenue, started accidentally when a man’s torch work on a truck frame ignited the building during his lunch break. The address is three-quarters of a mile south of Highway 9 or about a mile and three-eighths south of Harris’s west side. The page went out about 1:20 p.m.
When firefighters arrived, the building was fully engulfed, so they went into defensive mode and tried to protect the other buildings on the farmplace.
Firefighters from Harris, Ocheyedan, and Lake Park battled the fully engulfed structure for about two and a half hours. No injuries were reported.
Harris firefighters were called out again the next day, Thursday, March 20th.
A controlled burn that escaped its pit led to a grass fire near Harris, requiring the Harris Fire Department’s response. Chief Rost reported that the fire, located on Vine Avenue, destroyed a small shed. Despite the miscalculation of wind conditions, no injuries occurred, and firefighters extinguished the blaze after an hour and a half.
KIWA Staff Photo
