Le Mars, Iowa — The Orange City Fire Department helped the Le Mars Fire Department extinguish a fire in a Le mars home on Wednesday, November 2, 2022.
According to Le Mars Fire-Rescue Chief David Schipper, the Le Mars Fire-Rescue Department was called to a house on fire at 24 Fourth Street NW in Le Mars in the 1:00 p.m. hour.
He tells us when firefighters got there, they encountered heavy smoke coming from the front side of the home. There were two people and a dog in the home at the time of the fire. The two individuals were able to escape the fire, but the dog was still inside the home.
Firefighters were searching to find the fire on the main floor of the home when the kitchen floor started to sag and drop. Firefighters retreated out of the front door of the home and made entry through the garage, where they found a door that entered the home from the garage that led to the basement and up into the kitchen. At that time, the kitchen floor collapsed into the basement taking the refrigerator and other things to the basement as well.
Firefighters attacked the fire coming up from the basement and were able to advance down the stairway through flames, heat, and smoke to stop the fire. At the same time, a crew again entered the main floor of the house and located and rescued the dog. The dog was treated with a pet oxygen mask and appeared to be doing well. The dog was taken to a local vet for further observation.
Two of the occupants in the home at the time of the fire were taken by private vehicle to Floyd Valley Healthcare to be checked out.
Firefighters were on the scene for around two hours fighting this fire and investigating.
Schipper says the most probable cause for this fire was determined to be an unattended candle that ignited nearby combustibles. The fire spread up the north wall in the basement bedroom and into the ceiling/kitchen floor above. There was heavy fire damage in the basement bedroom and kitchen above as well as heavy smoke damage throughout the entire basement and main floor of the home. The home is insured. There were no injuries to firefighters, but a very dangerous situation for them with this being a basement fire.
He says in addition to the Orange City firefighters, the Le Mars Police, Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office, and Mid-American Energy assisted them.
