by Joseph Back

“One of our men who worked for us saw smoke coming out of the barn,” Town of Colburn resident Jackie Holub said when asked about the December 3 fire that destroyed a haymow and milking equipment on the family dairy barn at 16140 322nd Street, but without any lives lost, either animal or otherwise.

'There were no animals injured,” Holub said. “As far as that goes it was really good.” Mrs. Holub and husband Dan milked about 210 head of cattle, with six employees, some part-time and others full-time. The cows were kept in another building and transported to other farms for milking Friday morning, with about 30 head of cattle per farm. The land on which the barn stood until

See FIRE, Page 2

Several fire departments battled a blaze at the Holub farm in the Town of Colburn. Photo by Joseph Back.

FROM PAGE 1 past Thursday, meanwhile, has been in the family of Dan Holub (Jackie’s husband’s) for generations, attaining Century Farm status just two years ago. As of Friday, the Holubs were waiting on insurance to inspect the damage while no cause for the fire had been determined.

As to the response from area fire personnel, Boyd-Edson-Delmar (B-E-D) Fire Chief Ron Patten had more to share when reached Friday afternoon for comment on the firefighting end.

“We had one person that had to be taken to the hospital,” Patten said of a firefighter present at the site, though HIPPA law prevented him from disclosing names. Meanwhile, “there were no animals in the portion that was on fire,” Patten said of the dairy bam that burned, which he said was in “very nice” shape. A view after the fire showed the haymow had burned out and the milking parlor, visible from outside, had been damaged as well.

With the fire being reported “a little bit before 8p.m,” the blaze Thursday night was visible from across the Yellow River along County Highway S, with water trucks (called tenders) going back and forth between a pond with island located at 17314 County Road S and a fire hydrant in Boyd located at Oshkosh and Ingersoll Streets. With 19 to 20 water trucks and the temperature a chilly 28 degrees Fahrenheit the night of the fire, Patten said that many other local departments had taken part in the fight to bring the fire under control.

“We had a full response from Stanley and Cadott,” B-E-D Fire Chief Patten said of area departments that answered the fire call received “a little bit before 8 pm.” Also mentioned as answering the call were Anson, Tilden, Owen, Thorp, and Chippewa, the last one contributing four trucks. Patten said in addition that fire crews had been on site until 4 a.m. Friday morning, while friends stopped by to offer their sympathies to the family Friday afternoon regarding the barn fire. At present the Holub family is waiting on insurance and a site inspection to determine the cause of the fire.

Dan and Matt Holub stand in front of the barn Friday afternoon. The Holub family has farmed at the site since 1918.

Along with a pond located at 17314 County Road S, fire trucks made use of a fire hydrant in Boyd located at Ingersoll and Oshkosh streets to reload their water tanks for fighting the blaze at the Holub farm. Staff photo.