Firefighters called back a second time to extinguish flare up
Tom Oswald of 203 South O Road south of Aurora said he saw what looked like a July 4th sparkler near his century-old barn after dark on Monday night June 17. Then he saw what appeared to be flashlights shining in the loft of the structure but moments later the barn barn burst into flames in what he described as a fireball. By about 1 a.m. Tuesday morning the steel-sided wooden structure was a heap of smoldering wooden beams and twisted steel siding.
“I’ve never seen a ball of fire like that,” Oswald reported after seeing the flames explode from the barn.
Aurora Fire Chief Tom Cox reports firefighters were dispatched to the Oswald farm about 13 miles south of Aurora at 10:35 p.m. that Monday.
“When we arrived on scene the barn was fully involved,” Cox said, adding that a mutual aid call was made to the Giltner Fire Department for personnel and additional water to help fight the blaze. By the time the fire was out Cox says there were 14 firefighters on the scene and even a ladder truck which came in handy in dealing with a large cottonwood tree near the barn that had also caught fire.
Both Cox and Oswald said they believe the fire was started by an arcing power line to the barn that was being blown around by last week’s wind. Oswald believes that was the source of the fireworks sparkler he saw before the fire broke out. He said the heat from the fire in the barn located only about 70 yards from his house was so intense he began to be concerned about the propane tank situated between the two structures. A neighbor helped him put a garden sprinkler near the tank and he said he could soon seen steam rising off it.
The fire necessitated shutting of the power to the barn which resulted in his whole place being without power until the next day.
Even after firefighters left the scene after 1 a.m., they had to be called back after winds stirred the embers back into flames.
Oswald says the barn built in the early 20th Century was not used for much besides storage but since it been a part of the family farm for so long it had developed sentimental value. He said he had received several calls from relatives sharing their memories of the barn.
“Many litters of barn cats were born in that barn over the years,” he commented.