Hawarden, Iowa — The Hawarden Fire Department was called out for a fire on Sunday, February 15, 2026, near Hawarden.
According to Hawarden Fire Chief Payne Allen, at about 1:20 p.m., the Hawarden Fire Department was called to the report of a controlled burn that had gone out of control near 4910 Buchanan Avenue, about four miles south of Hawarden’s east side.
When they got there, the chief says the fire department saw a burning ditch and field. He says they were able to keep the fire away from structures and shortly extinguished the flames, with the help of farmers with disks.
Allen says no injuries were reported.
The fire department was assisted by the Ireton Fire Department according to their auto-aid agreement.
He says the fire was caused by a ditch-burning going out of control.
Chief Allen reports that the damage was limited to two acres of pasture and two acres of field.
He says the firefighters who responded were on the scene for about an hour.
The chief says there is not a burning ban, but he does suggest no burning at this time as it’s easy to lose control of fire with how dry it is now. He says you shouldn’t burn until we get a significant amount of precipitation. He says a little common sense goes a long way. If it’s windy out, don’t light your burn barrel.
The Alvord Fire Department also responded to a brush fire recently. Chief Tanner Van Middendorp says it was at 2027 Garfield Avenue, three miles east and three-quarters of a mile north of Alvord. He says about a half-acre burned through a grove. He says they also had to cut down a tree that was burning. The page for that fire went out about 1:45 p.m. on Friday afternoon.
KIWA Staff Photo
