Visible from miles away, smoke could be seen as part of Hillandale Farms burned on Saturday.
State officials say about 100,000 chickens were killed when a fire tore through the egg farm in Bozrah.
Officials say it took 100 firefighters and at least 16 different area departments to knock down the flames. But not before the massive blaze destroyed 50’ x 600’ chicken coop.
Firefighters say they received the call around 1 p.m. and the building was completely engulfed when they arrived.
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“There was a lot of fire coming out of the building and a lot of heavy smoke,” said Bozrah Deputy Fire Chief Jeremy Tarasevich.
The farm issued a statement that said in part:
“Our leadership team is proactively working with fire officials to support a thorough investigation of the cause of the fire. All employees are safe. There will be no further comment at this time.”
Local
A spokesperson for the state’s Department of Agriculture confirms that approximately 100,000 egg-laying hens were killed. While some may wonder if this could impact egg prices, they say no.
“There are more than 372 million egg-laying hens in the United States. The anticipated potential impact on egg prices due to this incident is minimal to none currently,” according to a Department of Agriculture spokesperson.
Still, the fire’s impact is being felt in Bozrah.
“When I heard about the chickens, I was really upset,” said nearby resident Crystal Kyllo. “That is a lot of chickens.”
