As those of you signed up for our Flash Alerts know by now, July 3 arrived with a bang – and then several blazes – as fires, three of them caused by fireworks, claimed a barn, cars, and fence lines Friday night and on into Saturday morning.
UPDATE: Neighbors have let us know that the rancher who lost his barn last night also lost one horse with two others burned and currently under the care of a veterinarian. We’ll be updating with info on how to help the rancher via a Facebook funding page shortly.
In at least three cases firefighters found piles of expended fireworks near the scene of nine fires reported Friday night, the frequency of the outbreaks raising eyebrows and sending neighbors to reviewing home surveillance systems for evidence of prowling amateur pyro-technicians.
A barn in Rodeo, sitting on the perhaps ironically named Blaze Ranch, burned to the ground. Other fires were reported in Richmond and Concord, some within minutes of each other. There were no reports of injuries.
There’s a Ranch Relief Fund on fb to help Nick Compaglia rebuild his barn and equipment. He lost one horse and either 1 or 2 others are burned and at UC Davis. Huge loss to a long-time local rancher.
Thank you, Ann… thought the horses made it out okay. Checking out the FB page…