TOWN OF CALAMUS — The cause of a fire that destroyed a barn on Highway 151 on Thursday afternoon is unknown.
Several drivers passing by the barn at N5212 Highway 151 called saying that the fire was at Highway 151 and Salem Road, which is in Beaver Dam's fire district.
The location was actually Columbus Fire District, Beaver Dam acting fire chief Randy Koehn said.
"A Columbus tanker pulled up at the same time when we got there," Koehn said.
The two fire departments worked together to fight the blaze with the assistance of Fall River, Lowell and Reeseville fire departments, who received mutual aid calls.
The barn was filled with hay, corncobs and shredded corn stalks which made fighting the fire difficult.
"The barn was full of everything," Koehn said.
An excavator was needed to help clear the barn.
"There was also a tin roof on it that had to be pulled off," Koehn said. "It had to be removed to get at the fire."
The rain may have made fighting the fire a bit miserable for the firefighters but did not cause any serious problems.
"We were lucky it didn't get icy," Koehn said. "We had to set up the water source on Highway 151 so it narrowed the highway. Traffic was reduced to one lane on that side of the highway."
No one was injured in the fire, which began around 3:16 a.m.
The property is owned by Hilda Lenz of Tomah and was being rented by Mervin and Andy Schaefer.
Columbus firefighters remained on the scene after most of the Beaver Dam Firefighters and equipment left at 6:47 p.m.
tpederson@capitalnewspapers.com