Fire crews were called to Del's Eatery & Pub in Eldridge, Iowa, shortly after 8:00 Thursday morning. When they arrived, the banquet hall portion of the building was engulfed in flames. The blaze quickly spread to the rest of the building.
Del's opens for business at 8:00 a.m. and we're told at least one employee was on location when the fire broke out. No injuries have been reported.
The flames were going strong for at least four hours before crews were able to get them extinguished. Crews remained on scene to put out hot spots.
Officials say at least a dozen fire departments, many of them volunteer crews, responded to the scene.
At some point around 10:00 a.m., the roof collapsed into the building, allowing more thick, black smoke to billow out.
Many people lined the streets, braving temperatures in the mid twenties to watch the effort put forth by firefighters.
Many onlookers say they are heartbroken over the loss of this Eldridge landmark.
"A landmark is something that every town has, most towns do a lot to protect that landmark."
"Sadness. It hurts inside to know this is Eldridge's most famous building. Everybody gathered here, everybody went here."
"I even had my wedding reception here, I grew up here my whole life so this has been just tragic for everybody."
Fire fighters have left the scene of the fire and all surrounding streets have reopened. City salt crews treated the area around the fire to make sure there were no slick spots.
