Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District crews faced an exceptionally busy shift Friday, May 22, responding to 15 emergency calls within a 14-hour period, including a structure fire that threatened nearby property along Airport Road.
Firefighters were dispatched to the blaze at approximately 4:33 p.m. after reports of a barn fire in a field near Airport Road. When crews arrived, they found the roof of a barn fully involved, while residents attempted to slow the spread with a garden hose.
According to fire officials, the primary residence sat about 100 feet away and directly downwind from the flames as stiff afternoon winds pushed the fire toward the home.
The first unit on scene, a command brush rig, used its onboard water supply to hold the fire in check until an engine company established a hydrant connection at the last hydrant on Airport Road. Firefighters stretched a supply line across the roadway near the intersection with 50th Avenue while launching both interior and exterior attacks on the fire.
Crews were able to quickly extinguish the blaze, saving much of the barn’s contents and preventing the fire from spreading to nearby vegetation and structures.
Officials said the approximately 100-year-old barn was largely preserved despite significant roof damage. Portions of the roof had begun collapsing inward, causing minor interior damage, but firefighters were able to contain most of the destruction to the roof area.
Investigators believe the fire likely originated from an ember carried by the wind from a burn pile located roughly 75 feet upwind of the structure. The barn’s cedar shake roof, combined with dry moss buildup and recent warm, windy weather, created conditions favorable for ignition.
Sweet Home Police Department assisted firefighters by providing traffic control while crews operated across Airport Road.
Fire officials noted that in anticipation of the Memorial Day weekend, the district had added a brush engine crew to daily staffing levels. That additional staffing, along with the absence of competing emergency calls at the time of the fire, helped crews respond rapidly and contain the blaze before it spread further.
The busy shift continued into the evening. Within hours of the barn fire, all district ambulances were committed to medical calls, a brush engine had been dispatched to a wildfire near Cascadia, and an Albany medic unit was responding into the district while neighboring agencies were also handling multiple emergencies.
Albany Fire Department and Lebanon Fire crews assisted during the hectic period.
Fire officials are urging residents to exercise caution throughout the Memorial Day weekend, particularly when burning debris or handling any outdoor ignition sources.
“Crews may be stretched thin and are doing all that we can to be available to respond to all emergencies,” the district said in a statement.
Sweet Home Fire officials thanked both the Sweet Home Police Department and Albany Fire for their assistance during the demanding shift.
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