At least 9,000 turkeys die in barn fire in Kings County

At least 9,000 turkeys died in a barn fire in Kings County on Wednesday morning

Canning firefighters were called to a barn complex on Canard Street in Lower Canard just before 7am. When they arrived, they found a two-story barn burning in the middle of several other barns, only about 50 feet apart.

Other departments from Kings, Hants, Annapolis, and Lunenburg counties were called in for help, usually with tankers.

Crews used two cherry pickers and other fire hoses to fight the fire from the outside, trying to protect the other sheds and several large propane tanks nearby.

Canning fire chief Jeff Skaling said the building that burned down was actually three buildings that had been connected over the years to form one structure. , by a 12-foot-tall poultry house coupled with a 175-foot, two-story poultry house,” he said.

The 9,000 turkeys that were lost were in the second adjacent building and were young birds, Skaling said. Another 9,000 adult turkeys were in the third section that firefighters were able to prevent the flames from reaching. Skaling said there is some hope that some of those birds can still go to market.

Nearby were four 300-foot high poultry houses and a storage shed with farm implements in it, along with a feed mill. The other barns had tens of thousands of turkeys and broilers, Skaling said.

At 10:30 am, many of the many tankers called to the scene were released. Emergency services remained on scene until after lunch.

Two firefighters were treated at the scene for exhaustion and one for a minor burn. No one had to go to the hospital, Skaling said.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but not considered suspicious.