Firefighters from Menlo, Stuart, Casey, Dexter, Adair, Greenfield, Guthrie Center and Panora Fire battled a fire late Friday night at an ethanol plant, in Menlo. According to a report in the Perry News, the blaze at the Koch Brothers-owned plant was reported at around 11-p.m., Friday.

The paper says a security guard at the Flint Hills Resources ethanol refinery said plant workers told him the fire started in the factory’s energy center and was caused by a faulty ignition switch in a thermal oxidizer. The guard, who did not wish to give his name, said this was the first time a fire occurred in the facility during his three-year tenure.

A Stuart firefighter, who also did not wish to be identified, said the fire was located in the conduits of the facility. He said large quantities of water were called in to standby in case the ethanol and other volatile chemicals produced at the plant caused an explosion.

The 110 million gallon ethanol production facility began operating in September 2008 as Hawkeye Energy Holdings. Flint Hills Resources LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Koch Industries Inc., acquired the plant in 2010 from Hawkeye Energy Holdings.

Authorities in Montgomery County are asking for your help in solving a case of vandalism. Officials say deputies with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office were called to the 200 block of E. 4th Street in Villisca, upon receiving a report of vandalism to a vehicle. When they arrived, deputies observed the front hood of a 1994 Izuzu Amigo had been pushed in. The damage was estimated at $300.

The incident is believed to have occurred between the hours of 1-a.m. and 6-a.m. Saturday (today). Anyone with information about the incident should call the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office at 712-623-5107.