Fire burns barn; no people, animals hurt

DAMASCUS -- Firefighters are seeking the cause of a fire that destroyed a pole barn on the Jim Burton farm in Goshen Township.
Damascus Fire Chief John Bricker said the Burton family is still tallying losses. He said the family has a grain, beef and hog operation on the farm at 14632 state Route 165.
Bricker said the Burtons are his neighbors and lamented that neither he nor his father, who is also a firefighter with Damascus, were home when the fire broke out.
Bricker said there were no animals housed in the building and no injuries reported. He said the pole barn housed a workshop and farm machinery.
He said firefighters were called to the Burton farm around 12:30 p.m. Monday and were on the scene until about 9 p.m.
Burton family members were home at the time of the fire and were able to remove some tractors and other equipment from the building, but not a combine or a dump truck, however.
Bricker said firefighters responded from Damascus, Beloit, Salem, Greenford, Perry Township and Ellsworth Township.