By Connor Lynch
WOOLWICH TOWNSHIP — An early-morning barn fire destroyed a barn and part of a beef herd on a Mennonite farm last month, causing $500,000 in damages.
Woolwich Township fire services, in Waterloo region, got called in at 2 a.m. on June 20. The barn, a large, old-school bank barn with numerous additions, was fully engulfed in flames. About 175 fat cattle pushed towards the doors. Most escaped, but 29 head were lost. The herd was insured, said township fire chief Dale Martin. Horses in a nearby paddock were cleared out.
With the barn fully ablaze, firefighters concentrated on keeping the blaze from spreading to nearby outbuildings and a house. The fire was likely caused by an electrical malfunction in a skid steer in the barn, Martin said.
