1 dead in Everly house fire

Investigators are still trying to determine the cause of a fire that claimed the life of an Everly woman on March 23.

Firefighters were called to 306 N Ocheyedan St., at approximately 3:20 p.m. According to Assistant Fire Chief Ray Savage, smoke could be seen coming from the house's vents. Emergency personnel entered the home and found its owner, Janice Erick, 91, who was transported to Spencer Hospital. She later died of injuries sustained in the blaze.

Fire departments from Everly, Royal, Spencer and Fostoria responded to the call. Savage said most of the flames were located in the southeast side of the basement, and crews of four firefighters at a time were sent in to battle the blaze.

Basement windows were removed to aid the fight. Savage said emergency personnel remained at the scene until approximately 11 p.m.

Ron Humphrey, special agent in charge with Iowa State Fire Marshal, said an agent has investigated the scene of the fire, but has not compiled a complete report yet.

"Sometimes it can take a couple months, sometimes it can take years. It just depends on the extent of the investigation," he said.

Humphrey said damage in the house was "pretty widespread." He said key elements of the investigation would be released once the report is finalized.

"It will be just the immediate facts of circumstance, but not everything due to confidentiality laws," he said.

Erick's death was the third fire-related casualty in Clay County in three years. The two others occurred in Spencer in 2020 and 2019.

"That's not good," said Savage. "It's just too bad."

According to her obituary, Erick was born and raised in Royal. She and her late husband, William, farmed in the Royal area prior to their retirement in the late 1980s. They moved to Mesa, Ariz., and Janice also spent a short time in Las Vegas before moving to Everly in 2020.

Funeral services for Erick were held Tuesday at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Spencer.