Lightning Likely Sparked Westgate House Fire

Lightning may have been the cause of a fire that destroyed an abandoned Fayette County farm house Tuesday afternoon (Sept. 25, 2018).

Fire units were called out to a property south of Westgate around 1:45 PM. Responding firefighters found the upstairs of the home engulfed. Crews from Westgate and Oran battled the blaze for over two hours.

Officials determined the building to be a total loss. Firefighters were able to prevent the blaze from spreading to two other buildings. No one was injured.

According to authorities, no one had lived in the home for several years. Records show the property is owned by Brett Mahoney of Oelwein.

Authorities said lightning most likely started the fire, but the official cause remains under investigation.