Zearing Fire Department

04/01/2026

03/27/2026

There are two Red Flag Warnings for Story County, The first is until 9PM Friday night and the second will go into effect Saturday starting at 10AM. There is not a burn ban in place for Story County but any kind of open burning is highly discouraged.

1152 AM CDT Fri Mar 27 2026
..RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM TO
9 PM CDT FRIDAY & SATURDAY FOR CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR PORTIONS OF NORTH CENTRAL TO SOUTHEASTERN IOWA...

The National Weather Service in Des Moines has issued a Red Flag
Warning, which is in effect until 9 PM CDT Friday evening. A Red
Flag Warning has also been issued from 10 AM to 9 PM CDT Saturday. The Fire Weather Watch is no longer in effect.

* WIND...For Today, Northwest winds at 10-15 mph, gusting to
20-30 mph. For Saturday, Southwest winds at 20-25 mph, gusting
to 30-40 mph.

* HUMIDITY...For Today, minimum values of 20-25 percent. For
Saturday, minimum values of around 15 percent.

* IMPACTS...Any fires that develop will likely spread rapidly.
Outdoor burning is not recommended.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions
are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of
strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can
contribute to extreme fire behavior.

03/14/2026

Stay safe everyone!

Blizzard Warning for Story County starting at 1PM Sunday.

1134 AM CDT Sat Mar 14 2026
..BLIZZARD WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 1 PM SUNDAY TO 7 AM CDT MONDAY...

* WHAT...Blizzard conditions expected. Total snow accumulations
between 2 and 4 inches. Winds gusting as high as 55 to 65 mph.

* WHERE...Portions of central, south central, southwest, and west
central Iowa.

* WHEN...From 1 PM Sunday to 7 AM CDT Monday.

* IMPACTS...Plan on slippery road conditions. Widespread blowing
snow could significantly reduce visibility. The hazardous
conditions could impact the Monday morning commute. Strong winds could cause tree damage and result in power outages.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

Travel should be restricted to emergencies only. If you must travel,
have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded, stay with
your vehicle.

For the latest travel conditions, check the Iowa 511 app,
www.511ia.org, or dial 511.
..BLIZZARD CONDITIONS SUNDAY INTO MONDAY MORNING... .A
significant winter storm will impact parts of the Upper Midwest this weekend, mainly from Sunday through Monday morning. Widespread snow will fall across Iowa with higher amounts of 6+ inches possible north and east. Winds will gust 55-65+ mph, resulting in significant drifting of snow and visibility reductions. Travel will become very dangerous, if not impossible at times across parts of northern and eastern Iowa. Precipitation will begin as rain on Sunday morning and transition to a wintry mix, which may produce a light glaze of ice, before transitioning fully to snow.

03/06/2026

When you call 911 for a medical emergency it is not only an ambulance service that is paged to the scene. When a call is dispatched, it is first paged to the "first responder" agency of the city that you live in. 🚑

Every city in Story County has some form of medical first response agency rated at least at the EMT level, meaning that personnel can respond to their fire or EMS station to bring their apparatus and equipment to medical calls to provide basic life support care before the transporting ambulance arrives. 🚒🚑

That being said, there is currently a massive shortage of first responders in Iowa. If you live in any of these cities and have the urge to help people when they need it, consider volunteering as a first responder. (You often get a cool coat too!) 👩‍🚒💪

(P.S: Some of these departments will even help pay for formal training to get into the emergency medical field or fire service😉)

Maxwell EMS
Nevada Fire Department
Zearing Fire Department
Story City/Lafayette Twp. First Responders
Colo Fire and Rescue
Gilbert-Franklin Twp. Fire and Rescue Agency
Collins Fire & Rescue
Huxley Fire and Rescue
Cambridge Fire and Rescue
Slater EMS
Roland Fire & Rescue
Ames Fire Department

02/22/2026

02/12/2026

Paul Vincent was recently honored with a retirement plaque in recognition of his 21 years of dedicated service to the Zearing Fire Department. Thank you Paul!

02/11/2026

The Dakins Lake Ice Derby scheduled for Saturday, February 14th has been CANCELLED. Poor ice conditions and forecasted warmer weather has made the ice unpredictable and unsafe.

02/08/2026

11th Annual Dakins Lake ice derby next Saturday, February 14th. Ice conditions will be monitored this week with the forecasted warmer temps. There is currently 12” of ice across the lake. Any Derby updates will be made here.

Special thanks goes out to all derby sponsors!

02/07/2026

Come out and enjoy BBQ pork lunch today!
Supporting Zearing Fire Dept

01/28/2026

Join us for lunch! Takeouts available.
BBQ Pork Sandwich Meal.