Horses perish in barn fire
Pictured firefighters did their best at this massive barn fire at Impressive Dogwood Horse Ranch near Milan on Saturday morning, April 5.
The brutal weather that began with a week of severe storms, went on a different rampage on Saturday, April 5 in the early morning hours when lightning struck a horse barn on the property of Ronald Brandes. He said six of the beloved horses housed at the Impressive Dogwood Horse Ranch near Milan, lost their lives. “Early this morning, our facility was struck by lightning and caught fire. We are truly at a loss for words and are still grappling with this catastrophic situation,” Brandes wrote on social media. He went on to say they lost six lives of the beautiful horses kept at the immaculate facility that is known throughout the area and beyond for their work with children.
Brandes and his son Mike tried to rescue as many horses as they could but still lost the horses – Pal, Blue Jeans, Pippa, Winchester, Ivy, Daisy and their trainer’s dog, Jerry Lee. “We are devastated to say we lost such amazing horses, they weren’t just client horses, they were family also,” Brandes said.
The Friendship Volunteer Fire Department, along with several others were called upon to assist the Milan Volunteer Fire Department with the massive fire. They noted, “This is a devastating loss for the community and this family. Please keep everyone involved in your thoughts and prayers.”
The firefighters from Milan, Moores Hill, Friendship, Dillsboro, Versailles, Osgood, and Delaware fought a battle without a good outcome. The loss of the horses and beloved dog hit all of them hard.
Rhonda Brandes Beck, Ronald’s daughter, noted, “Thank you isn’t enough. Until you are witness to the heroic efforts of the men and women from local fire departments and EMS in an emergency situation, you truly can’t understand the impact they have in our community. Unfortunately, our family was beyond blessed to witness it.”
She said that the lightning strike was about 3 a.m. Saturday morning. She noted there were many organizations involved in helping.
As the Ranch runs on donations, they are hoping to build back. They will need help from the community and anyone who loves animals the knows about the wonderful work they do there, helping children and many others.
Editor’s Note: We will print any updates on this story and fund raisers people might have to help rebuild as we receive them. Contact wburnett@ripleynews.com.
