Fire at 427 Ashton Place NE Update

Cedar Rapids firefighters were dispatched to a 3-story multi-family apartment complex for the report of an air conditioner on fire. The call was received on Wednesday, May 6 at 1:00 a.m. at 427 Ashton Place NE, which is Valley View Apartments. 

When firefighters arrived, flames were coming from the air conditioner opening and the flames were visible on the exterior of the building. 

Fire personnel deployed hose lines and made entry into the affected apartment through a sliding patio door.  Inside the apartment, firefighters found an 82-year old male unconscious on the floor.  Firefighters were able to move the victim to the outside of the apartment where emergency medical care was provided. The victim was transported by Area Ambulance Service to a local hospital.  The victim sustained life-threatening thermal injuries and has been subsequently transferred to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. 

The victim has been identified as Robert Wesley Mischek, age 82. 

The fire was contained to the one apartment unit on the ground floor of the complex. 

Other adjoining apartment units were evacuated, but occupants were allowed to return after firefighters ventilated the apartments of any smoke and assured there was no indication of harmful gases from products of combustion. 

An investigation by the Fire Department determined the fire originated from smoking materials discarded near a recliner in the apartment unit.