DE SOTO, Iowa —One person was injured in a large fire that destroyed a central Iowa salvage yard on Wednesday.The fire at Hawkeye Auto Salvage in De Soto started shortly before 10 a.m. Wednesday, and smoke from the blaze was visible from miles away. De Soto firefighters were joined by crews from Van Meter, with several other departments also repsonding, including Adel, Dexter, Earlham, Redfield, Waukee and Winterset."The fire was large when we got here," Van Meter Fire Chief Mark Schmidt ...
DE SOTO, Iowa —
One person was injured in a large fire that destroyed a central Iowa salvage yard on Wednesday.
The fire at Hawkeye Auto Salvage in De Soto started shortly before 10 a.m. Wednesday, and smoke from the blaze was visible from miles away. De Soto firefighters were joined by crews from Van Meter, with several other departments also repsonding, including Adel, Dexter, Earlham, Redfield, Waukee and Winterset.
"The fire was large when we got here," Van Meter Fire Chief Mark Schmidt said. "We could feel the heat this far back from the fire."
The Dallas County Sheriff's Office also confirmed to KCCI that it assisted with the fire, and part of Highway 169 south of De Soto was closed while emergency crews responded to the scene.
Heavy machinery was used to pull apart the structure, allowing firefighters to extinguish hot spots.
One person who was burned in the fire was transported by private vehicle to a central Iowa hospital. He was eventually flown by helicopter to Iowa City to be treated for burns.
Schmidt praised the firefighters’ dedication, noting that nearly all were volunteers with other jobs.
"All of us, except for Waukee, are volunteers," he said.
No firefighters were injured.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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Iowa DNR investigating fuel spill following fire
According to a news release from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, an unknown amount of fuel, oil and water mixture from the fire scene has reached Bulger Creek.
DNR officials are investigating after "crews confirmed the presence of an oily sheen" in the creek that flows into the Raccoon River just north of Van Meter.
Absorbent booms have been placed in the creek to minimize downstream migration of the fuel mixture.
"No dead fish have been observed along the affected section of the creek, and no sheen has been observed downstream in the Raccoon River at this time," Iowa DNR said in a news release. "As a precaution, downstream users are advised to avoid the area at this time."
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