Firefighers battle blaze at Coralville business

Two Coralville businesses sustained extensive damages Monday after emergency responders worked for nearly two hours to extinguish a fire.

Emergency crews responded to 2421 James St. in Coralville around 11:30 a.m. for a report of a building on fire. The building is home to several businesses including #1 Cab & Auto Repair and Auto Toyz. When emergency crews arrived on scene, they found #1 Cab and Auto Toyz fully engulfed in flames.

Coralville Assistant Fire Chief Bill Horning said the fire began at #1 Cab, but a specific cause could not yet be confirmed. He said he was told there was an explosion likely involving gasoline, but did not have any further details. Horning said the fire then spread to its neighboring business, Auto Toyz.

Horning said once the fire reached Auto Toyz, a vehicle customization business, several tires caught fire. Once crews arrived on scene, Horning described the fire as “defensive.”

“We couldn't get inside. It was too hot, too smokey, couldn't see,” he said. “So we had to work from the outside and got things knocked down.”

Jeremy Parrish, a sales manager at Auto Toyz said an employee from #1 Cab rushed into Auto Toyz to warn them about the fire and everyone was able to evacuate the building without injury.

Horning said the damages to both businesses was significant. He added a neighboring business, Greer Motors, was likely saved from any damage because of a cement wall separating it from #1 Cab.

Crews fully extinguished the blaze around 1 p.m., but many have been on scene all day investigating and checking for potential hot spots.