On Thursday January 30, Linn County Sheriff’s Deputies along with Linn County Sheriff’s Rescue 57, Mount Vernon – Lisbon Police Department, Lisbon-Mount Vernon Ambulance Service, Mount Vernon Fire Department, Lisbon Fire Department, Ely Fire Department, Marion Fire Department and Cedar Rapids Fire Department E-6 were dispatched to 1574 W. Mount Vernon Rd for a structure fire.

According to Devin Rinderknecht of the Linn County Sheriff’s Office, upon arrival, emergency responders discovered a pole building on the property was fully engulfed in flames. No persons were injured in this incident.

According to Jake Buster of the Mount Vernon Fire Department, responders operated in a defensive strategy to rapidly bring the fire under control from the exterior. MVFD relied on mutual aid departments for water and staffing during the incident and traffic control around the scene. The extended driveway and rural location drove a unique tactic for water supply, including using water tankers to shuttle water from the nearest hydrant at the Caseys on Hwy 13 and Mount Vernon Rd. The incident took less than two hours as crews diligently searched for and extinguished any hotspots.Mount Vernon Road was closed to one lane during portions of the evening, with law enforcement providing traffic control during those segments.

Emergency responders worked to put out the flames but the pole building and its contents were a total loss.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time and this incident is still under investigation.