Fairfield firefighters extinguish house fire Tuesday night

FAIRFIELD — The Fairfield Fire Department extinguished a house fire in an abandoned home Tuesday night.

The fire occurred at 203 North Ninth Street, and was reported by a neighbor of the property at approximately 11:07 p.m. Fairfield Assistant Fire Chief Lyle Hannes said a police officer was the first one on the scene, and radioed to the driver of a firetruck that flames were visible. When the driver arrived, he reported that he could see flames shooting from three sides of the house.

“When our guys got there, we hooked up to a hydrant, got our gear on and knocked the fire down,” Hannes said.

Firefighters were on scene for about four hours. Hannes said the home appeared to be vacant, and that there was no electricity or gas going to the home. He said the fire did not endanger any surrounding buildings.

Hannes said he’s not sure if the damage from the fire was so bad that the building will have to be torn down.

“That’s a question for a structural engineer, but I can say the house was heavily damaged for sure,” Hannes said. “It’s not in very good shape, and there was water damage to it, too.”

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

This was at least the second house fire in as many weeks that the Fairfield Fire Department has responded to. On Wednesday, June 7, firefighters responded to a house fire on West Spalding Avenue, a short street between 10th and 12th streets in the northwest part of town. Hannes said that home was occupied, and the fire was bad enough to force the family to move out.

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com

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