Sibley, Iowa — A couple of calls on Wednesday for the Sibley Fire Department turned out about as well as a fire call can.
The first call came in about 1:45 p.m. on Wednesday. Someone called to report a strong smoke smell at Country View Manor. Sibley Fire Chief Ken Huls says Country View Manor and several other buildings in Sibley are equipped with fire alarm systems that automatically alert the Osceola County Emergency Center, and the dispatcher there pages the fire department. But Huls says no alarm activated at Country View Manor — a person actually called 911.
But Huls said that firefighters checked the building extensively and couldn’t find any cause for the smoke smell. Huls says they’re still not sure what it was, but it may have been light ballast that went bad. He says sometimes those can make a bad smell. He says about six firefighters responded.
The second call came in about 6:30 p.m. It was a call of smoke at the Sibley Laundromat.
Huls says when firefighters arrived at the laundromat, after a brief search, they found a motor on one of the large commercial machines had sized, and became hot. He says the smell of smoke was probably from a belt that had burned. Six to eight firefighters responded to that call.
When they went to another recent call to a ditch fire, the fire was out by the time they got there.
Huls advises that if you smell smoke, don’t hesitate to call the fire department. That’s what they’re there for. He says even if there’s no fire, they can help you find the source of the smoke, which could be a fire ready to start.
According to the chief, on their last eight fire calls, the Sibley Fire Department hasn’t had to pull any hose off the trucks. And he says that’s a good thing. They’d rather have responses like that compared to the loss from a large fire.
KIWA Staff Photo
