In the early morning hours of Thursday, a possible lightning strike started a fire in the barn and spread to the house at Hilltop Wagyu in Mason, where five people were sleeping.
Crews responded to the fire at about 1:20 a.m., and ultimately called for a third alarm. Firefighters remained on the scene into Thursday morning.
The three residents of the house, three adults, two children and two house cats, were able to escape the house, according to social media posted by one of the residents of the house, Nate Choquette. As of early Thursday morning, the status of two barn cats was still unknown.
The house, located on 42 Valley Road, is the home of New England Wagyu at Hilltop Farm, part of an operation of raising pure Wagyu beef cattle. Farmers Hunter Weston and Nate Choquette, Choquette’s partner Jolie O’Brien, and Choquette’s two children were home at the time of the fire.
According to a GoFundMe page started in support of Choquette, O’Brien and Weston, during the early morning hours of Thursday, July 2, Choquette’s 5-year-old son was awakened by a loud bang and went to his father’s room to sleep. As they were settling back to sleep, Choquette heard a loud, whistling sound, which was the barn attached to the house being engulfed in flames.
Choquette, O’Brien and Choquette’s children exited the house, and O’Brien re-entered to awaken Weston, according to the GoFundMe. By the time she re-entered, the flames had spread to the kitchen.
The occupants believe the bang heard was lightning striking the barn.
The barn was destroyed and the main house heavily damaged. In addition to the damage to personal belongings, Weston’s truck was also destroyed.
The GoFundMe in support of Choquette, Weston and O’Brien is available at tinyurl.com/Hilltop-Fire.