Arson ruled cause of house fire

Authorities have listed arson as the cause of the fire that heavily damaged part of this home in southeast Le Mars. No one lived in the home, which is a rental property. Firefighters put out the blaze before it spread to the whole house, but the fire did cause $15,000 in damages. [Click to enlarge]

The fire, at 414 Fifth Ave. S.E., destroyed part of the house but caused no injuries. The house, a rental property owned by Chris DeRocher, of Le Mars, was vacant and unoccupied at the time, according to Fire Chief Wayne Schipper.

"Inside the structure some things lead to our final decision that it was arson," Schipper said Wednesday afternoon. "There are indications within the area of origin that it was an intentionally set fire."

Investigation, he said, is ongoing.

Damages to the home were in the $15,000 range, he said.

Schipper named no suspects at this point but said the authorities are "following up on leads."

Evidence from the scene was sent to the crime lab in Ankeny.

"We should have findings on those in two weeks," Schipper said.

The fire was reported Sunday, Feb. 8 at about 8 p.m.

When firefighters arrived on the scene, the back porch of the one-story home was fully engulfed in flames, Schipper said.

"Firefighters mounted an aggressive attack and slowed the fire down on the back porch," he stated in a press release. "Firefighters then entered the residence through heavy head and smoke conditions and extinguished the rest of the fire."

Electric and gas service were connected at the house but Schipper said they did not influence the fire.

Investigating the incident are the Le Mars Police, the Le Mars Fire Department and the Iowa State Fire Marshal's Office.

Anyone with information on the fire is asked to call the Le Mars Fire-Rescue Department at 546-4023 or CrimeStoppers at 548-4968.