SAUK COUNTY (WKOW) — Multiple show animals were killed in an overnight fire that destroyed a more-than-150 year old family barn near Reedsburg.
“Yeah it was surreal. I don’t know how to explain it, the flames were taller than our shed,” Shannon Scherbert, the barn owner, said.
The Scherberts are still reeling from the fire still smoldering on their farm.
According to Reedsburg Fire Chief Craig Douglas the fire broke out around 2 a.m. and because of how big the fire was, all they could do was go on the defensive.
The fire started in the barn but it’s actually very close to more buildings on the farm. That’s why the Scherberts are thankful for the firefighters that the fire didn’t spread.
“I’m grateful for the fire department, I’m grateful for friends and family, everyone that has been over and helped or just has sent a call. We’re very blessed, very fortunate that nobody got hurt,” Scherbert said.
However, it was what they lost inside the barn that hurt the most.
“[My husband] saved all but four show cattle and seven Boer goats,” Scherbert said. “It was the kids’ pride and joy, it was their 4-H projects and that was probably the hardest.”
Firefighters were on scene for 12 hours and the fire will continue to burn because there were more than a hundred hay bales inside the barn.
Douglas says that’s all firefighters can do.
“They’re just really difficult to put out so they’re going to smolder for a period of time and hopefully by [Monday] morning they will have burnt themselves out completely,” Douglas said.
Then the Scherberts can start next steps.
“We’re going to rebuild,” Scherbert said. “Insurance, see what we have, figure out what we lost and go from there.”
Fire officials don’t know how the fire started. Crews from Alliant Energy also helped out because there was a power pole caught up in the flames.
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