TRENTON — A “controlled” wheat field fire at Rouse Farms got out of control and destroyed a barn on Tuesday afternoon in Jones County.
Kyle Koonce — assistant chief of Trenton Volunteer Fire Department — responded to a call from farm workers who said they couldn’t take care of the blaze on Highway 258, about a mile east of downtown Trenton. A barn in close proximity to the wheat field caught on fire and collapsed while the firefighters were suppressing the flames.
“The workers were burning the wheat field and the barn just caught on fire,” Koonce said.
There was nobody in the barn at the time of the fire and there were no injuries.
Burning wheat fields are common in agriculture. After the farmers harvest wheat, the fields are intentionally set on fire and more soybeans are replanted to continue the cycle. Precautions are taken prior to the burning and property is rarely touched.
Although there wasn’t an eyewitness at the scene, Koonce formulated his own ideas.
“I’m sure the wind was blowing in that direction and a hot ember made its way to the barn,” Koonce said. “In my opinion, this was just a freak accident.”
The Trenton Fire Department received plenty of help dousing the blaze, as six additional departments from Jones and Craven County came to deliver assistance. Phillip’s Crossroads, Wyse Ford, Cove City, Rhems, Comfort and N.C. Forestry all came to get the fire under control. With the exception of N.C. Forestry, all of the workers were volunteers.
“We definitely needed the manpower of the other departments,” Koonce said. “We tied a hose to a pond, established the water supply and the extra hands were definitely necessary.”
With the additional help, the fire was taken care of rather quickly. Other than the barn, no other piece of property was damaged.
Junious Smith III can be reached at 252-559-1077 and Junious.Smith@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at @JuniousSmithIII.
