Iowa City apartment fire displaces residents

CEDAR RAPIDS - The residents of two Iowa City apartment units are displaced Tuesday morning after a fire engulfed the second-story apartments Monday night.

The Iowa City Fire Department was called to a working structure fire at 1001 Oakcrest St. about 8:40 p.m. Monday. The first units on scene found a second-story apartment fully involved, with fire threatening nearby apartments, according to the fire department.

Fire crews began an “aggressive fire attack” and brought the fire under control in about 12 minutes, according to a news release. Firefighters searched the burned apartment and neighboring apartments for victims, and they made sure the fire had not spread, according to the news release.

The crews also conducted “salvage operations” to protect the personal belongings of people in the apartment building, the fire department reported.

A total of 13 firefighters responded to the blaze and managed to contain the fire to the apartment where it started, officials reported. The fire was completely under control in 30 minutes, and fire crews were on scene for about two hours.

The fire displaced the occupants of two apartments, and damage is estimated at $42,000.

The fire department is continuing to investigate the cause.