NUEVO: Barn fire threatens horses, other structures

NUEVO — Several vehicles and farm implements were destroyed in a fire that burned a barn and threatened nearby horses, Friday, Dec. 8. The destructive blaze erupted at a rural residential property on the 23000 block of California Avenue, just north of Firecat Road and three tenths of one mile east of the Hemet Maze Stone, in the unincorporated community of Nuevo.

Riverside County deputies and firefighters responded to the fire about 9:47 p.m., after an area resident called 911 to report the fire.

Twenty firefighters from six engine companies responded to the fire, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Public Information Officer April Newman explained in an incident report. They were assisted by a water tender.

When they arrived, firefighters reported finding “one barn fully involved in fire,” said Newman. The barn was described by witnesses from the scene as a large utility and equine barn with a covered slab and attached horse stables.

While firefighters battled the fire inside the barn, horses spooked by the blaze and all the activity stomped about and ran in circles inside nearby pens and corrals.

It was not immediately known if any horses had been inside the stables that burned or if they were moved as the fire was first spreading.

Firefighters spent about thirty minutes battling the blaze, which caused an estimated $75,000 in damage and destroyed much of the barn and its contents; including a large tractor, side-by-side utility vehicle and other farm implements.

In spite of the losses, firefighter’s efforts saved approximately $362,000 in other structures, outbuildings, property and belongings that had been threatened by the fire.

There were no reported evacuations related to the fire and no horses or other animals were reported as injured; however Riverside County Animal Control officials responded to the scene for an unspecified reason.

After extinguishing the blaze, firefighters remained at the scene of the fire for about two hours conducting overhaul operations.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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Nathan Wilking/Fire Department Incidents-Riverside County

 

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Trevor Montgomery, who recently moved from Riverside County to Shasta County, runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, The Valley Chronicle and Anza Valley Outlook as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.