ESTHERVILLE – A large fire burned a house in Estherville on Saturday, authorities say.
On Saturday, January 2, 2021, at approximately 3:52 AM, Estherville, Iowa emergency crews were dispatched to a house on fire in the 1400 Block of North 6th Street, following a call from a neighbor reporting a large fire in the area. Estherville Police Officers responded and found the residence located at 1414 North 6th Street with flames coming out of several windows. The house was fully involve with fire. The home was owned and occupied by Paul Ostendorf.
Estherville Fire units responded to the fire with the assistance of the Wallingford and Gruver Fire Departments. The fire involved most of the residence and fire crews were able to extinguish the flames. Firefighters were on scene for about 8.5 hours.
An investigation into the fire is being conducted by the Estherville Police Department, Estherville Fire Department, State Fire Marshall’s Office, and the State of Iowa Medical Examiner’s Office. Wallingford FD, Gruver FD, Estherville PD, and Estherville Ambulance all assisted at the scene.
The investigation is ongoing and additional information is not available at this time.
Other agencies assisting at the scene were: The Estherville Ambulance, Emmet County Emergency Management, the Emmet County Sheriff’s Office. Several citizens and businesses also supported responders at the scene.