MASON CITY – A slew of firefighters and police responded to a reported house fire in the Central Heights neighborhood early Thursday morning, and one man was pulled out of the house and sped away in an ambulance after frantic CPR was performed. He later died.
The house fire was reported at around midnight at 1516 South Coolidge Avenue, owned by 62-year-old Jesse Pierce. A passer-by called 911 to say that flames could be seen inside the house and that people were inside. Firefighters and police immediately responded, and the nearby intersections were blocked off with barricades as people began to gather. Firefighters rushed to the house and smashed out a rear window as the front door was kicked in. An ambulance drove right into the front yard, the rear doors flew open and a stretcher was brought out. Moments later, firefighters brought Pierce out of the house and placed him on the stretcher and appeared to be performing CPR. The ambulance made a u-turn in the large, grassy field adjacent to the house and then sped away. Pierce later died at Mercy Hospital.
A female subject, Cherie McClemons, was also inside the house, unconscious on the floor in her bedroom, Mason City fire officials said later Thursday. She was transported to Mercy Hospital and later to Iowa City.
Curiously, little or no smoke was visible on the house or at the scene, and there was virtually no smell of fire or burning materials. A fire investigator at the scene refused comment.
Once the ambulance was gone, firefighters brought out a large fan and set it inside the house. They walked around the outside and inside of the house with flashlights. Investigators arrived, as did Fire Chief Bob Platts. Another ambulance arrived and parked close by as police kept neighbors and on-lookers at a distance. Firefighters huddled and talked and checked each others gear.
After about 30 minutes went by, a fire erupted in the living room of the house. Firefighters doused the flames with one of the large hoses they had dragged into the front yard. They cleared the scene at about 2:35 AM.
The fire started in a recliner in the living room and was caused by a cigarette in an overturned ashtray that was unnoticed when it fell between the seat cushion and arm of the chair.
httpv://youtu.be/QqMDd37b7Dc
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The fourth ward’s fearless leader Janet Solberg hides behind a child as she gawks at a fire about a block from her house. A good night’s sleep apparently isn’t required in order to sell insurance these days.
httpv://youtu.be/fHR7Dg3Udg4
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