De Soto Fire Department Extends Appreciation

Chief Hilgenberg (From the De Soto Fire Department Facebook page)

The De Soto Fire Department would like to extend our sincere appreciation to all of the agencies and organizations that responded to and assisted with the Hawkeye Auto Salvage fire. Incidents of this size require a tremendous amount of coordination, resources, and teamwork. We are extremely grateful for the quick response and professionalism shown by everyone involved. A special thank you to: Van Meter Fire Department, Winterset Fire Department, Earlham Fire Department, Adel Fire Department, Waukee Fire Department, Dexter Fire Department, Redfield Fire Department, Dallas County Emergency Management, Dallas County Sheriff’s Office, De Soto Police Department, De Soto Public Works and Iowa DOT. The cooperation between our neighboring fire departments, law enforcement, emergency management, public works, and other responding personnel played an important role in safely managing this challenging incident. We would also like to recognize Hawkeye Auto Salvage for the support they have provided to the fire service over the years. Hawkeye has always been willing to provide vehicles for extrication training, giving firefighters valuable hands-on opportunities to practice the skills needed when responding to serious motor vehicle accidents. We greatly appreciate their continued support of our department and the surrounding fire service. Most importantly, our thoughts and prayers are with the individual who was injured during the incident and is currently receiving care in Iowa City. We are thinking of the victim, their family, and loved ones and wish them strength and a safe and speedy recovery. We are fortunate to have strong working relationships with our mutual-aid partners throughout Dallas County and the surrounding area. When a major incident occurs, these partnerships and the willingness of everyone to work together make a tremendous difference. Thank you to every firefighter, law enforcement officer, dispatcher, emergency management professional, public works employee, and support personnel who helped during this incident.