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Massive fire destroys family barn in Tuscarawas Township
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Massive fire destroys family barn in Tuscarawas Township

TUSCARAWAS TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A massive fire destroyed a Tuscarawas Township family’s private barn, which also happens to be their business.

Now the community is coming together to help.

“We just wanted to do something, and I figured we could at least have the food,” said Carrie Els, a close family friend.

A collapsed foundation, a charred vehicle and large amounts of rubble covered in black smoke and ash are all that remains of this family’s private barn in Tuscarawas Township.

“They lost everything. I mean, as far as their business goes,” said Marc Els, Carrie’s husband.

Marc and Carrie said the family restored antique trucks and owned a truck hauling business.

“He just parked his truck about an hour ago. He was done for the day, and it just burst into flames,” Marc said.

Brewster Fire Department Inspector Tom Ross said he and his team found the building engulfed in flames with seven tractor-trailers located inside around 4:30 Tuesday afternoon.

“It was devastating just to see the flames. 20 foot flames. The wall was moving aside. The front fell. It was horrible,” Carrie said.

Fortunately, Ross said no one was injured.

“With the size of the fires, last time I checked I think we have 13 tankers delivering water due to no hydrants in the area,” Ross said , whose agency contracts with Tuscarawas Township for fire protection.

Ross said putting out that fire took a lot of work due to water supply issues that crews eventually overcame, in addition to the fact that each tanker truck contained about 500 gallons of diesel fuel.

But he said it is not expected to pose a danger to nearby residents thanks to proactive measures and the help of several agencies from Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties who responded to the scene.

“That amounts to a lot of equipment. I would say there are at least 100 firefighters on scene,” Ross said.

As Ross said, investigators are looking into the cause of the fire and he said crews will remain on scene to put out any other hot spots.

“They are good people. They’re a good family and we’re a tight-knit community and everything, so we’re going to help them get through this,” Marc said.

Marc told News 5 he hopes they can find the owner another truck and trailer before he heads to work.

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