Farmhouse fire likely caused by lightning
A fire possibly caused by lightning early Monday morning caused an estimated $100,000 damage to an old farmhouse used for storage on a farm near DeForest.
The DeForest Fire Department responded to the blaze on the farm along Yahara Road north of the village shortly after 4:30 a.m., during a strong thunderstorm that was moving through Dane County.
Deputy Fire Chief Brent Foss said the fire was contained to the single structure. The property owners live in a different house on the farm, and no one was inside the stricken structure. There were no injuries.
"The fire remains under investigation, but it likely was caused by lightning," Foss said. "The building pretty much was a total loss."
The DeForest department was assisted by the Sun Prairie fire department because the closest mutual aid department from the village of Dane was busy on a different fire call at the same time, assisting on a barn fire on County Q near Arlington, also possibly caused by a lightning strike during the storm.
