Small fire hits Capitol Building

A small fire did little damage Monday evening in the state capitol building. Facilities manager Mark Willemsen says workers have been renovating walls in the basement for a couple weeks now.He says a worker was stripping wood with some lacquer thinner, and steel wool used by a worker sparked when it got near an electrical outlet. Willemsen says the woodwork’s probably fifty years old, and the incident will mean a bit of remodeling.Willemsen says the capitol’s alarm system worked fine when the small, smoky fire broke out. When the building alarm goes off, it signals both Des Moines fire and capitol police at Terrace Hill. Two officers with fire extinguishers and a hose, plus building sprinklers were all working quickly. Two state troopers were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation. Willemsen says the damage from the fire is probably less than five thousand dollars.