Iowa Town Evacuates After Cornfield Catches On Fire

A town in western Iowa was evacuated after a field of standing corn caught on fire this (Wednesday) afternoon.

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The Crawford County Sheriff’s Office received a call sometime between 11 am and noon Wednesday morning about a large fire in the 1500 block of J Avenue in Charter Oak says a KTIV article. Dry conditions and strong winds helped the fire spread.

The winds blew the fire toward the town of Ricketts at a rapid pace.

At around 1 pm, the Crawford County Emergency Management Agency announced that 100 people needed to be evacuated from their homes.

Authorities reported that the fire was extinguished at 3 pm Wednesday. No injuries or structures have been reported as damaged as a result of the fire.

According to Carroll Broadcasting, Crawford County Sheriff’s Office, and firefighters from multiple local agencies worked together to put the fire out.

According to Radio Iowa, at least four field fires were reported in Crawford County. Cherokee County Emergency Management also reported seeing smoke drift into the City of Cherokee.

At this time there is no additional information.

This wasn’t the only fire Wednesday afternoon.

Fire crews responded to a different grass fire in Dallas Center. During the time of the fire, KCCI reports that temperatures were in the mid 70’s, and winds were gusting at 30-35 mph. Smoke from the fire was visible from the National Weather Service Des Moines radar site.

As vegetation becomes more dormant and drought conditions continue to worsen, it has become easier for fires to start and spread.