The cause of a house fire in Newton Monday night that claimed the life of at least one dog remains under investigation. Newton Fire Marshall Jacob Halferty says neighbors reported the fire at the two-story house in the 600-block of West Third Street South just before 6 p.m. 

“First arriving units saw heavy smoke showing. We started an exterior attack and ran into a water supply issue with some low-pressure hydrants. We had multiple departments here to mainly help us get tank water.”

The Newton Fire Marshall says there were no injuries to human occupants, but a dog in the home died, and another dog was unaccounted for as of Monday night. He adds the house is a total loss, and that wind fed the fire. But Halferty adds he saw no damage to the homes next to the house, and firefighters were still putting out hotpots on the house two and a half hours after the initial call. Firefighters and equipment from fire departments in Baxter, Colfax, Grinnell, Kellogg, Monroe, Reasnor, assisted at the scene along with the Newton Police Department and Jasper County Emergency Management Agency.