FIRE services were called to a farm at Folly Gate on Sunday to deal with a range of single-storey farm buildings which had caught fire. The fire started when a spark from a tractor ignited a bale of straw. Four fire engines were called to the scene just before 1.30pm — two from Okehampton, one from Hatherleigh and one from North Tawton — as well as an environmental unit from Exeter and an incident command vehicle from Exmouth. The barns, which covered an area of 30 metres by 20 metres and were located close to a residence, were fully alight by the time fire officers arrived. There was also further cause for alarm because they contained fertiliser which could have been explosive. At the height of the fire, four jets of water and six sets of breathing apparatus were needed to keep the blaze under control. It took the firefightersseven hours fully to extinguish the blaze, by which time the buildings and contents had been severely damaged. Fire officer Ian Donovan said barn fires were particularly challenging for the fire service: 'There's a lot of hazards contained in barns. You get pesticides, fertilisers, and fuel.'
