Daniel Sheeder (pictured above)

Three individuals from Adel were recently taken into custody following the fire incident that occurred early Monday morning on the Raccoon River Valley Trail Bridge.

According to Dallas County Sheriff Adam Infante, 19-year-old Daniel Sheeder, 19-year-old Ezra Coulter, and 19-year-old Leola Pierce, all from Adel, allegedly trespassed into an unlawful area with a chain-link fence underneath the bridge around 2am. Infante states that the three individuals started an uncontained fire and continued to add wood, and it grew uncontrollably. He shares that embers from the fire started to ignite the bridge structure above, and the teens attempted to put out the fire, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Infante details that none of them tried to contact emergency services during the incident. 

All three individuals were charged with Trespassing Causing Damage Over $300 and Criminal Mischief in the 1st Degree while Sheeder was additionally tagged with Arson in the 2nd Degree, and Coulter and Pierce were also charged for Reckless Use of Fire. The Dallas County Conservation Department is estimating the cost to replace the damaged bridge sits at approximately $896,000. Raccoon Valley Radio will bring you more information as it becomes official.

Leola Pierce (pictured below)

Ezra Coulter (pictured below)