Marion County firefighters battled a blaze in Anthony on Monday afternoon that was first spotted by Fire Chief James Banta as he returned to the fire department’s headquarters building.
Banta saw a large column of smoke shortly before 2 p.m. and soon discovered that a 1,000-square-foot building was fully involved in flames in the 12000 block of NE 25th Avenue, with a mobile home just 20 feet away also in danger of catching on fire.
Banta established command, directed a full structural response, ensured the residents were evacuated from the adjacent mobile home and secured the utilities.
The first of eight units arrived on scene at 1:54 p.m. Firefighters from Anthony Station #1 completed a primary search of the mobile home, ensuring no one was inside. Firefighters deployed three hose lines to knock down the fire and protect the mobile home.
The fire was called under control at 2:11 p.m. There were no injuries reported to firefighters or civilians. The cause and origin of the fire remains under investigation.