Lightning Suspected Cause of Barn Fire

Lightning from a passing thunderstorm may have triggered a fire Wednesday at a barn and workshop belonging to Lee Mick at 843 Old West Point Road.
Firefighters were summoned to that location around 5:00 p.m after central dispatch received a report that a barn, with some horses and hay inside, was on fire. County Fire Chief Donny Green says neighbors reported hearing a very loud clap of thunder just before discovering the fire, and since neither the barn nor shed had electricity, lightning is the suspected cause.
Green says upon arrival, firefighters found an enclosed workshop attached to the barn was on fire and that the blaze had spread to the front portion of the barn.
Green says firefighters were able to quickly extinguish the fire but the shed and all it’s contents were destroyed including several tools, a lawn mower and go-cart. He says the fire burned to the inside of the barn and got into the rafters, but the damage to the barn was minimum.
The owner and neighbors, after discovering the fire, released the horses into a fenced pasture, so they were not harmed.
Members of the Cookeville Highway and Short Mountain Highway Fire Stations responded along with officers of the Sheriff’s Department who assisted with traffic control.