Today, at approximately 9:15 AM, the Ankeny Fire Department was dispatched to a commercial structure fire at the Prairie Ridge Church, located at 825 NW 36th Street in Ankeny. The 911 caller, who was with the on-site construction company working onsite, indicated that a small fire had occurred due to a torch being used to dismantle an exterior wall.
When crews from the Ankeny Fire Department and Polk City Fire Department arrived, they noticed a small amount of black smoke coming from the exterior wall and roof area of the church that was undergoing a renovation project. The fire was under control in about 30 minutes after deploying two hose lines and using an aerial ladder, as well as a mobile elevated work platform, to access the roof and upper wall areas to extinguish the fire.
There was a pre-school operating at this location at the time of the fire, but they evacuated and remained at a safe location during firefighting operations. There were no injuries reported and crews were placed back into service after about 90 minutes from the time of the call.
The Ankeny Fire Department would like to thank these agencies for their assistance: Ankeny Police Department, Mid-American Energy, Polk City Fire Department, and the Polk County Sherriff’s Office Communications Center.