More than two dozen animals perished in a three-alarm fire on West Road on Tuesday, but crews were able to recover several newborn chicks from the flames.
Crews were toned out to 679 West Road in Temple at 3:52 p.m., after a passerby and his son were driving by and saw the smoke, according to Temple Fire Chief George Clark. The man, Jeremy Judkens of Temple, pulled up the driveway, and finding the fire underway called 911.
“He was driving by when his son happened to look up and saw the smoke,” said Clark at the scene. “They stopped and saw the garage was up in smoke.”
Judkens cut loose two horses that were kept close to the house, which fled into the surrounding area and were recovered by a neighbor shortly after.
The house is occupied by owner Celeste Wyrosdic, who was not home at the time of the fire. She and another adult displaced by the fire are being assisted by the American Red Cross.
When firefighters arrived, the fire was already well underway, said Clark.
“The house is a total loss,” said Clark on Wednesday. “The shell of the house is still standing, but it’s essentially gutted.”
Fire officials suspect the fire started in the garage, but the cause of the blaze has not been confirmed. There was a heat lamp in the garage, where a herd of 20 goats were being housed, that may have been the source, said Clark. Nineteen of the goats were killed in the fire.
“The garage was fully involved when I got here,” said Clark at the scene. “If they didn’t get out on their own, they didn’t make it.”
Crews discovered that at least one of the goats had been able to make it out, said Clark, although the animal suffered burns.
Firefighters also discovered newborn chicks in the basement, and were able to safely ferry them out of the house in a bucket. Three dogs and two kittens also perished in the fire.
No humans were injured in the fire, though one firefighter was treated with oxygen by EMS personnel at the scene, according to Clark.
Crews from Peterborough, Jaffrey, New Ipswich, Wilton, Temple, Rindge, Mason and Massachusetts crews from Ashby and Ashburnham responded to the scene.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.