A local farmer said he doesn’t know how he will feed his cows through the winter after a barn fire late Tuesday night destroyed all of the farm’s hay bales.
Robert Holland, who said his parents own and operate Holland Poultry near Cool Springs, said the barn housed a stockpile of hay bales to feed the farm’s cows.
The blaze also destroyed a $100,000 multipurpose John Deere tractor inside the barn, Holland said.
“Unbelievable,” Holland said Wednesday while surveying the damage. It’s not pretty is it? The worst thing of course is the cows. That was going to take care of them through the winter.”
Iredell County Fire Marshal David Souther said the barn, at 246 Ledgehill Road, Statesville, may continue to smolder for days. The cause is not likely to be determined, he noted, with possible causes including lightning and spontaneous combustion.
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The fire was reported around 11:30 p.m. Tuesday by several callers driving along Interstate 40, which runs directly beside the barn, according to Cool Springs Volunteer Fire Department Chief Andy Webster.
Firefighters responded to the scene and sprayed water around the perimeter of the barn to prevent the spread of the fire, Webster said. No injuries were reported.
Responders were on scene for two hours before the fire was under control and officials chose to let the fire die out on its own.
“It wasn’t going anywhere and it wasn’t hurting anyone, so we just decided to let it burn itself out,” Webster said.
The barn was about 150 feet from the closest of two chicken coops, which contained 13,000 chickens, according to Holland. None of the chickens were harmed by the fire or smoke.
The barn was insured, Holland said, but he didn’t know the total cost of the damage.
Firefighters from Cool Springs, Harmony, County Line and Ebenezer responded to help fight the fire, Webster said.
