Rock Valley, Iowa — A Rock Valley mobile home purchased from FEMA after the flood of 2024 was uninhabitable after a fire on Sunday, March 1, 2026.
According to Rock Valley Fire Chief Brent Eshuis, at about 4:50 p.m., the Rock Valley Fire Department was called to a report of a trailer fire at 605 10th Street.
When they got there, the chief says the fire department saw the side of the home on fire and smoke coming from the attic area. He says they had to make a hole in the roof and tear out the ceiling to fight the fire.
Eshuis says no injuries were reported.
He says the occupants had been putting cigarettes out in a plastic coffee can on the porch, and with the strong winds, it caught flame and started the home’s vinyl siding on fire.
Chief Eshuis reports that the damage was extensive and that the home will require major repairs to the walls, roof, and ceiling in order to be inhabitable again.
The fire department was assisted by firefighters from Hull, per their auto-aid agreement, as well as responders from the Rock Valley Ambulance Squad, the Rock Valley Police, and MidAmerican Energy.
He says the firefighters who responded were on the scene for about an hour and a half.
KIWA Staff Photo
