Schoon Farms suffers extensive loss by fire PDF  | Print |  E-mail
Written by LOREN UNDSETH   
The Schoon Farms outside of Verndale sustained extensive property damage from a fire reported at 11:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 12. The Verndale Fire Department responded to the call and was assisted by the Staples and Wadena fire departments. The fire took ten hours to contain.

While few cows perished in the fire, most of the approximately 50 animals that have been lost so far were sickened from smoke inhalation. According to Harvey Schoon, they are waiting and watching the animals to see if more will be lost.

The biggest loss was the barns. Out of nine barns that were interconnected, seven were lost in the blaze.

Schoon lives about four miles from the farm and was able to arrive on the scene shortly after the local fire departments started arriving. Schoon and his brother David were able to move cows out of the barns while firefighters worked to contain the blaze.

In one of the milking barns that burned, firefighters saved 74 out of 80 cows. While the ceiling and roof were burning, firefighters wearing oxygen masks cut a hole in the barn wall that they pushed cattle through after freeing them from stanchions. Firefighters cut through the stanchions to free the cattle. Many of the cows still had the stanchions hanging from their necks as they stood in the farmyard after being released.

The farm had been changing the focus of the operation from milking to breeding registered cattle. Schoon says they lost some very good quality breeding animals in the fire. The farm had the capacity to milk 900 cattle.

Schoon says that due to the current dairy situation and to changes in their farming operation, they were underinsured for the extensive loss suffered in the fire. They still have between 400 and 500 cows that were kept outside. However, many of them are not yet producing milk.

The barns that burned were steel-covered pole buildings. The Minnesota State Fire Marshall has investigated the fire, but the cause is still unknown at this time.

Schoon is still dealing with the amount of damage on the farm and is working to find ways to take care of the remaining cattle. They have had to find new ways to accomplish all the day-to-day tasks, since basics like water supply and electricity were affected by the fire. Areas of the burned buildings continued to smolder for days after the fire.

A fund has been set up under the name "Schoon Farms Benefit" at Twin Cities Federal Bank.