PLAINVIEW — A large dairy barn several miles northwest of Plainview was destroyed Tuesday evening in a fire that could be seen from the town.
Assistant Plainview Fire Chief Mike Lyons said the fire was reported by the owner, Paul Fick, about 8:30 p.m. About three dozen firefighters from Plainview, Elgin and Zumbro Falls responded. The fire, however, was going strong when he left the town with smoke visible in Plainview, he said. The barn was fully engulfed in flames when the first trucks arrived.
Fick had just finished milking and the cows were out of the barn, Lyons said. A few calves, however, were inside and were killed, he said.
Because of the heat from the fire and weather, a few firefighters had problems with heat and had to be cooled off with water, he said. None were injured.
The cause of the fire is not yet known, he said. A state fire marshal is at the scene this morning to try to determine the cause, Lyons said.
