(Paullina)– A large fire has devastated a portion of downtown Paullina.
Firefighters were called shortly after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday to a report of a fire in some apartments above Mesner’s Restaurant at 107 East Broadway in Paullina.
Upon arriving on the scene, the Paullina Fire Department requested mutual aid assistance.
All five occupants of the apartments and adjacent businesses were evacuated. No injuries were reported.
Firefighters from 15 area fire departments battled the blaze through the night in bitterly cold weather and blizzard conditions, with windchills that were well below zero.
The building housing the restaurant and apartments was pretty much destroyed, with significant fire, smoke and water damage to several surrounding businesses.
The cause of the blaze is under investigation by the Iowa State Fire Marshall.
In addition to Paullina, firefighters from Primghar, Sanborn, Sheldon, Orange City, Granville, Marcus, Germantown, Calumet, Sutherland, Meriden, Cleghorn, Archer, Alton, Hospers and Larrabee battled the blaze.
Paullina firefighters remained on the scene at mid-morning watching for flare-ups.
