Many Volunteered To Help

At Barn Fire

To the Editor:

During the afternoon and evening of Saturday, December 30, our horse barn burned to the ground. Volunteer firefighters from Dodgingtown, Botsford, Newtown Hook and Ladder, Sandy Hook, and Hawleyville responded quickly to several 911 calls, and because the fire was so large Stony Hill, Bethel, and Redding also sent firefighters to help. By the time the firefighters arrived, there was no chance that the building could be saved, but the volunteers did an outstanding job of containing the fire and preventing its spread to adjacent buildings. Saturday was the day of the big snowstorm, so conditions were difficult, to say the least. Town highway trucks helped clear the road for the many vehicles which needed to get through.

We cannot commend too much the efforts of our volunteer firefighters. Arriving at about 3:45 pm, they used over 100,000 gallons of water to contain the fire and worked until 1 am. After receiving a call around 5 am that the fire had restarted they returned to douse it again, and they have been back two more times. One cannot fully appreciate the efforts of these volunteers until a tragedy happens and they appear. The same can be said of our volunteer ambulance people, who were also on the scene of the fire. I think our town should be very proud of the services these volunteers provide.

We also want to recognize and thank all the wonderful neighbors and horse people who responded to this tragedy and helped move horses, find stalls, and generally offer whatever support they could. Fortunately, all eight horses were out of the barn at the time of the fire. Had the fire occurred at night, they all would have been lost. As things stand, our barn is a total loss, with the exception of two large silos, which still remain. However, no other buildings were burned or even damaged, and there was no loss of life.

We have received numerous phone calls from people offering condolences and help, and every one of your calls has been much appreciated.

Sincerely,

Judy and Bob Holmes

Kim Macey

Hundred Acres Road, Newtown                                   January 2, 2001