Crews battle Lawrence fire in muggy conditions

TOWN OF LAWRENCE, Wis. (WBAY) - A cloud of smoke took over the evening sky in the Town of Lawrence Monday night. Beneath it all, a barn in flames.

Firefighters faced hot and muggy conditions as they battled the barn fire.

It was reported by the Wrightstown Fire Department chief and assistant chief who were on their way to the Lawrence Fire Department for a training session. They alerted the people who live in the house, who didn’t know the barn was on fire, and they got out of the house safely.

Action 2 News spoke with the owner for a few minutes while we looked at the damage. He was too heartbroken to talk on camera. He told us he’s lived here his entire life -- that’s 73 years -- and the barn held a lot of memories for him. Seeing it go up in flames was devastating.

The farmer is retired, so there weren’t any animals or people working in the barn at the time of the fire, but it was full of equipment.

Nineteen water haulers and seven engines from neighboring departments helped battle the fire.

Several firefighters became overheated as they worked at the scene. An ambulance was called in to treat them. There are no reports of further injuries.

”With this heavy air and humidity, you get that adrenaline at first and then once that wears off guys were overheating. We had a couple of people overheat. They had to cool down. We managed to get everyone under control. We had plenty of help,” Lawrence Fire Chief Kurt Minten said.

It took firefighters about three hours to contain the flames. Nothing was left of the barn but rubble. The owner says all he has left are the memories. But he said he’s grateful no one was hurt and lucky that help arrived just in time.

Crews were able to save the house on the property.

Hickory Road was closed for a period of time Monday but has reopened to traffic.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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