On Wednesday, Jan. 31, the Pine River Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office to a report of a working structure fire in a barn at an address on County Rd. W.
Pine River called for immediate assistance from the Corning, Merrill and Russell Fire Departments for tanker trucks along with the Town of Texas for manpower and water.
The first officer from Pine River found fire showing from the north side of the barn and requested additional resources from the Town of Hewitt Fire Department.
The tanker truck from the Merrill Fire Department and the Pine River engine arrived on the scene within one minute of each other. This allowed the Merrill crew to position their tanker for an interior attack which was conducted by both departments, quickly knocking down the fire.
Firefighters then did additional overhaul to make sure the fire was completely extinguished on the roof of the barn. Firefighters cleared the scene in less than an hour and although the structure sustained damage it was still intact and all of the contents were unharmed in the event. The barn itself was used for storage of many large items including campers and autos. It was not a working farm and no animals were present or harmed.
Pine River Chief John Uttech called this fire as an excellent example of the connection local departments have when working emergencies.
“we quickly brought the flames under control with great team work,” he said. “It is very rare to see an interior attack much less a save of a barn fire in a rural setting. We were fortunate this evening that the weather and resources of several departments combined to be a save for us. It meant a lot to see all of these agencies and 20 of Pine River’s firefighters lined up to help our neighbor.”