Killington fire rekindles; barn destroyed

Rutland Herald

By Brent Curtis
Staff Writer | February 25,2015

Provided Photo

A family escaped unharmed and their house was saved when a fire destroyed this barn Monday night at 275 Coffee House Road in Killington.

KILLINGTON — Firefighters from six towns braved flames and temperatures of 10 below zero Monday night and early Tuesday morning to douse a stubborn barn blaze that took more than nine hours to extinguish.

Firefighters, their faces covered with scarves against the brutal cold, poured water onto a barn at 275 Coffee House Road that Killington Fire Chief Gary Roth said had been converted into an auto garage filled with welding equipment and antique British Spitfires.

“A couple of (welding) tanks exploded when we first got here, and there is a power line that is next to the barn,” Roth said a little after 9 p.m. Monday. “We’re focusing our efforts on saving the house.”

The fire chief said Tuesday afternoon that the house was saved — and all the occupants and their pets escaped unhurt.

One man at the scene was evaluated by Regional Ambulance Service personnel for minor burns to his wrist but declined treatment, Roth said.

Despite the efforts of firefighters who trucked water 4 miles to the remote scene off Route 100 throughout the night, the barn, which was reported ablaze at 8:30 p.m., was a total loss by 8 a.m. the next day.

“The fire was through the roof by the time we got there,” the chief said Tuesday. “We couldn’t attack it from inside.”

Fire crews from Killington, Rutland City, Rutland Town, Bridgewater, Pittsfield and Plymouth responded to the fire.

By 2:30 a.m., the fire was out and crews left the scene, but they were called back two hours later when winds blew the embers to life.

The fire wasn’t completely doused until 8 a.m.

With temperatures so cold that runoff from the hoses froze almost instantly, Roth said it was a long night for crews who had to take turns warming themselves in trucks.

“We were very careful. My guys come first,” the chief said. “We kept Regional Ambulance there all night and the Trailside Lodge gave us warm drinks and food.”

The cause of the fire remains unclear but isn’t considered suspicious, Roth said, adding that the blaze started at the back of the building.