Monday, September 9th, 2013
Firefighters battle silo, storage building fires near Maria Stein
By Margie Wuebker
MARIA STEIN - Chickasaw firefighters kept busy Saturday morning handling fires in a storage building and a silo at two different locations.
Fire destroyed the large storage building owned by Robert Stachler at 2341 Rolfes Road. Firefighters were called to the scene at 1:19 a.m. A neighbor reportedly heard an explosion and spotted flames coming from the structure.
"The building was fully engulfed when we arrived on the scene," fire chief Mark Seitz said. "There was nothing we could do but keep the fire from spreading and put out the flames."
Heat melted siding on the Stachler home and flames threatened to spread to a propane tank approximately 50 feet from the fire.
The 24-by-30-foot building reportedly contained lawn mowers, a golf cart and assorted tools. Nothing could be salvaged, according to Seitz.
Three Chickasaw trucks and 12 firefighters responded. St. Henry and Osgood firefighters also received mutual aid calls but their services were not needed.
The cause of the blaze has not been determined mainly due to the extent of damage, the fire chief noted. No dollar loss is known; Stachler, who is insured, is compiling an inventory of the contents, Seitz said.
Firefighters remained on the scene approximately two hours.
A second alarm sounded later in the morning as Chickasaw firefighters responded to a 10:58 a.m. silo fire at the home of Randy Goettemoeller, 2458 Goettemoeller Road, Maria Stein.
Goettemoeller reportedly spotted smoke coming from the top of a farm silo and called 911 after seeing burning embers inside the chute. Seitz said firefighters quickly extinguished the fire with foam. They also checked the silo but found no flames or damage inside.
Ten firefighters and three trucks remained at the scene for an hour before returning to the station.
