Fire Consumes Wood Mulch Piles At B & B Bedding

Firefighters continued to battle the fire at B & B Bedding well into the early evening, leaving a small contingent to watch the contained fire overnight (Photo by Don Hubbard)

Oskaloosa, Iowa – The threat of fire was high, with counties below Mahaska County actually under a Reg Flag Warning for fire hazard. The strong winds associated with that warning helped to stir the embers buried within the piles of wood mulch stock piled at B & B Bedding south of Oskaloosa Tuesday morning.

The alarm sounded at nearly 11:30 am and before the day was done Pella, New Sharon, Cedar Township, What Cheer, Eddyville, along with Mahaska County Conservation all joined the Oskaloosa Fire Dept. in helping to control some of the small grass fires.

Oskaloosa Fire Chief Mark Neff estimated nearly 50 firefighters joined in the fight and by late afternoon, no one was sure how many trips the tanker trucks had made shuttling water from 2 hydrants in Oskaloosa.

By 6:00 pm. Chief Neff said that crews were gaining on the blaze. He said that with the weather conditions, spontaneous combustion was a likely culprit for the fire.

Firefighters were assisted on the scene by Mahaska Health Partnership Emergency Services, Mahaska County Emergency Management, Mahaska County Sheriffs Office, and the Iowa State Patrol.

Local businesses donated water and food for those on scene. No injuries have been reported as a result of this fire.

Several picture gallery’s of the fire are available on our Facebook Page HERE.