Five departments respond to blaze
Three horses died in the early morning hours of Wednesday, Feb. 9 when a barn in Williamsburg Township was destroyed by flames.
Williamsburg Fire Chief Ken Wylie said based on the preliminary investigation the fire started due to an electrical problem in a barn on Bethel-Concord Road sometime before 1 a.m.
The homeowners were awakened by their dogs and began trying to rescue their four horses. One horse made it out before succumbing to the smoke and flames.
Wylie said the barn was fully engulfed and the roof was collapsing when his department arrived on the scene.
“We got it under control quickly, but there was a lot of hay in the barn so we stayed on scene putting out hotspots for quite a while,” Wylie said.
Fire crews from Williamsburg, Bethel-Tate, Jackson, and Stonelick Townships, and Mt. Orab all responded to the fire. They remained on scene a total of four hours.
He said the barn is completely destroyed, including a few additions to the structure. No other buildings were damaged. In addition to the three horses, several pieces of farm machinery were damaged in the fire. A preliminary estimate set the total damage at $150,000 to $175,000.
“We appreciate all the hard work of all the surrounding departments that came to help out,” Wylie said.