An early morning blaze at one of Crawford County’s largest dairy farms destroyed a milking parlor.
Firefighters were dispatched at 4:15 a.m. Sunday to the Bortnick Dairy Farm, 21820 Palmer Road. The structure was already fully engulfed with flames when firefighters arrived on the scene.
The Bortnick farm is one of the largest dairy farms in Crawford County with more than 1,550 head of cattle. Milking is performed around the clock in three shifts. The workers were between shifts at the time of the fire so no cows were in the building, according to Jack, who said the farm will attempt to milk all the cows in the smaller parlor until the main structure can be cleaned up and rebuilt.
No injuries were reported on scene. Crews were able to contain the blaze so it did not reach the surrounding buildings. Cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Fire departments responding from Crawford county were Conneautville, Springboro, Summit, Conneaut Lake Park, Conneaut Lake, North Shenango, Hayfield, Linesville and Fallowfield Fire and Rescue; Platea, Albion and Cranesville volunteer fire departments responded from Erie County. Departments dispatched from eastern Ohio were Monroe, Pierpont and Andover volunteers. Multiple departments were called in for coverage from other areas including Mercer County.
