WEST CONCORD — Fire severely damaged a rural Dodge County barn on Monday, but no people or animals were injured.
At 4:01 p.m., the West Concord Fire Department and the Dodge County Sheriff's Office responded to a fire at the William Lambert farm about five miles north of West Concord. When West Concord Fire Department officials reached the burning barn, they called on the Kenyon Fire Department for mutual aid, Dodge County Sheriff Jim Jensen said. The West Concord Police Department was also on the scene.
Lambert's farm has cattle, and the animals do have access to the barn, but Jensen said no animals were caught in the blaze. Jensen said the fire apparently started slowly but grew quickly when hay on the top floor caught fire. Firefighters were able to control the flames before they were able to reach the house or the garage on the Lambert property. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, and Lambert declined comment.
After an hour of fighting the blaze, most of the barn's roof had fallen in or been destroyed, but the structure remained upright.
Firefighters fought the fire for more than two hours.
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"As with most rural fires, they take a while to fight because of you have to get water," Jensen said.
