VIDEO: Waterloo Firefighters responded to a duplex fire early Monday morning.
The fire started around 1:30 a.m. on the 400 block of Wellington Street.
The building was 75% engulfed in flames when crews arrived on scene. It was one of the largest the crews have ever seen.
Waterloo Fire Captain Bill Harter said, "Yeah, this is bigger than normal."
Responders could not go inside because it was too dangerous, so they had to think of creative ways to put the fire out.
Captain Harter said, "It was a defensive fire right off the bat, so bigger hose lines, monitors, you can see the ladder truck was set up. We put as much water in it as we can, and we just let it sit, and whatever flares up, we'll get with the handlines."
One of the neighbors, Jamie Tucker was woken up by her daughter due to the fire.