Today, at approximately 4:40 PM, the Ankeny Fire Department was dispatched to a residential structure fire at 1505 SE Green Park Circle in the southeast side of Ankeny. The homeowner, who made the call to 911, indicated she arrived home to find a fire on the deck of her residence.
The Ankeny Fire Department arrived on scene in just a few minutes and found a well-involved deck fire that was extending into the residence. Crews immediately began to extinguish the fire and search for two cats, which were rescued from the residence. The cats were provided oxygen by firefighters before they were taken by neighbors to a local veterinary clinic for further evaluation.
Due to the extensive fire found upon arrival, the fire was upgraded to a second alarm which brought multiple agencies to assist with the fire. The Ankeny Fire Department would like to thank these agencies for their assistance: American Red Cross, Ankeny Police Department, Altoona Fire Department, Bondurant Fire Department, Johnston-Grimes Metropolitan Fire District, Polk City Fire Department, Polk County Dispatch, Polk County Emergency Management, and the Urbandale Fire Department.
The cause of the fire appears to be from a discarded cigarette that was placed in a container on the deck. There is no other information available at this time.