Anyone hear about a fire in Iowa with antique cars

[Jeff H]

I just barely caught a little bit on the NY news about some house or something in Iowa that burned to the ground and the owners were away on vacation and some antique cars were lost. Hopefully it wasn't anybody that visits the site.

I found this:

[ QUOTE ]
Fire broke out at a multi-million dollar home in Des Moines. It happened around 7:30 last night just east of the Jordan Creek Mall.

When firefighters arrived they saw flames shooting through the roof.

The owner of the house was on vacation at the time. No one was injured in the blaze. The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.


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[Schonyenko2]

Somebody wake up JD. He lives in DM.

[Belair62]

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The $1.6 million West Des Moines estate of prominent developer David Walters burned to the ground Sunday night, throwing flames into the air for more than two hours in a spectacle visible from more than a mile away

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[DSYenko]

It was a friend of mines dad that I went to high school with.He is a home builder in Des Moines and had a 10,000 square ft home he moved into not long ago,he has been into cars for years and was on his way to Florida when the home caught fire. I will know what was saved or lost in a day or so.I heard it started in the garage with an explosin,i will update when I know more,,,

[J_D]

[ QUOTE ]
Somebody wake up JD. He lives in DM.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks for the wake-up call Ken.

From www.DesMoinesRegister.com

<font color="red"> Photo of house below </font>

http://vh10018.v1.moc.gbahn.net/apps/pbc...06&amp;maxw=490

<font color="blue">2 infernos hit metro

W.D.M. luxury home, downtown project destroyed

By PERRY BEEMAN and ELIZABETH OWENS
REGISTER STAFF WRITERS
December 20, 2004
The $1.6 million West Des Moines estate of prominent developer David Walters burned to the ground Sunday night, throwing flames into the air for more than two hours in a spectacle visible from more than a mile away.

Walters and his wife, Jody, flew to Naples, Fla., Sunday after having an early Christmas celebration in the 10,000-square-foot, five-bedroom home with their five children and three grandchildren the night before, relatives said.

The family's celebration had been set for Sunday, said the Walterses' daughter, Angela Walters-Tessau. But her parents decided to go to Florida earlier than planned, so the gathering was moved to Saturday.

"It could have just been devastating," said Walters-Tessau. "We're just thankful that everyone is alive. . . . We're just in shock."

The fire was the second sizable blaze in the metro area within 24 hours. Des Moines firefighters responded to a downtown fire about midnight Saturday. A commercial building under renovation at 519 Fourth St. burned through the night. The cause of that fire was undetermined Sunday night.

In West Des Moines, Walters-Tessau said neighbors told her that a huge explosion occurred in the basement of the Walters home. Investigators told the family that the source might have been a gas line or boiler, which "had been checked two or three times this week," Walters-Tessau said. Fire officials finally were able to enter the home at 11 p.m.

No one was home during the fire.

Clyde Evans, West Des Moines economic development director, said the two-building home at 259 62nd Court, a mile east of Jordan Creek Town Center, was Walters' wife's "dream home."

"I feel very, very bad for Dave, because it was a special house," Evans said. "It's a tragedy for him to lose it, especially before Christmas."

Walters, who is a commercial and residential developer, has real estate projects around the Des Moines area, including the development where his home was located. Selling prices for homes there start at $300,000.

The Walters home, which consisted of two buildings connected by a breezeway, took two years to build. The family moved in last summer.

The home was so large that some onlookers thought it was an apartment building as flames continued to leap from the charred beams. Several neighbors reported that Walters had several vehicles and a boat in the garages.

About 8:40 p.m., small explosions could be heard coming from the home. What appeared to be a boat trailer could be seen in the garage after it had almost completely burned.

Firefighters pushed three vehicles - a Cadillac SRX sport utility vehicle, a late-model BMW sports car and a Hummer - onto the lawn. Six other cars were lost. "They were the kind of cars you didn't drive," Walters-Tessau said.

Jeremy Rhyan and Susan Epp were driving along E.P. True Parkway near the Jordan Creek mall when they saw the flames above the trees.

"It was just roaring," Rhyan said of the fire as he watched it from a nearby bike path. Firetrucks were stationed to the north, standing guard over several condominium and apartment buildings.

Dan Christensen, who was driving home on 60th Street, saw the fire and made the first call for firefighters at 7:29 p.m.

"We got here when it was this little flame. But it caught on very quickly," Christensen said.

Fire crews from West Des Moines and neighboring suburbs fought the fire, pumping water from a block and a half away in some cases. Neighboring lawns, including Mary Jean Howdle's yard just north of the mansion, were covered with debris and falling embers.

"I said to my husband, 'Do you smell something in the house? Did you spray something?' " Howdle recalled.

The estate didn't have a sprinkler system. One wasn't required because when the home was built, it was not considered part of West Des Moines, said West Des Moines fire Lt. Mike Whitsell. Homes of that size are now required to have such systems.

Whitsell said the blaze was challenging to battle because of the cold weather and size of the estate. Crews rotated every 15 minutes or so because of the cold.

Dave Merrill, who lives near the house, said, "I was watching TV and saw a reflection off a window in my house, and I thought, 'My house is on fire!' " But then he ran outside and saw it was coming from Walters' house. "It just spread extremely quickly."
Register staff writers Donnelle Eller and Paul Anger contributed to this report.</font>

[Racefan]

All I can say is that I was at home in Marshalltown when it occurred. I had nothing to do with it.

[djunod]

More interesting is the state salary spreadsheet...

Here's an interesting one...

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BAKER,NANCY L UOI F JOHNSON UNIVERSITY LIBRARIAN $158,452.00 $5,463.15

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Nice salary for a librarian...

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[Racefan]

She sure must keep it quiet in her library! Wish I'd paid more attention to the Dewey Decimel System now! I guess the joke is on me!!

[ohhawk]

FYI......reported losses on the vintage cars includes a Shelby Series One race car, 1934 Ford Roadster, and a 1970 LS6 Chevelle valued at $100,000.

[rich p]

Wow thats unbelievable. Guys flew in on car inspections for my clients.. Not a good holiday