First water, then fire - Weymiller family has had to endure both

by David M. Johnson

Aside from an expected snowstorm that was gripping the area, December 20, 2010 began and appeared like any normal, cold winter day along Hartley Drive in rural New Albin, where the hog confinement facilities owned by the Dave and Ross Weymiller families is located.
After staff exited the facilities at 2 p.m., Ross Weymiller drove around the hog confinement buildings at 2:45 p.m. for one last look to satisfy any concerns. This has been a particular routine that has been repeated since the opening of the business some three years ago. Little did Ross know that within an hour of that final look, two of the facility's buildings would be in flames.
At 3:30 p.m., one of the operation's hired men living nearby observed smoke, immediately calling Ross, who then called 9-1-1. Driving in that snowstorm, the New Albin, Lansing and Eitzen, MN fire departments arrived on the scene within 30 minutes. Upon arrival, there was a consensus that the situation demanded more assistance, so the Waukon fire department was also called in. Because of the blizzard-like conditions, the Allamakee County Secondary Roads Department provided plows to clear the way to the farm. The Weymillers used their tractor to blade out the driveway and around the buildings. As fire units arrived and were deployed, additional water was pumped from the Upper Iowa River.
Of the five-building set-up, the two main buildings - the 40,000 square foot sow building and the 32,000 square foot farrowing unit - were engulfed in flames. Because of the design of the units, once the fire began, the buildings acted much like a wind tunnel, funneling the spreading fire at a break-neck speed. Fueling the fire was the materials used in construction of the buildings. The wood and plastic, once introduced to the flames, acted as kindling, feeding the inferno with the sustenance necessary for a fire this size.
Even with an alarm system that did work, fire breaks in the attic of the buildings, and the quick response from local fire departments, this fire was bent on not being squelched but traveled with an almost human-like, unquenchable thirst.    Noticing the speed of the fire as it spread from one building to the next, there was concern that something had to be done to sever the structural connection of the farrowing building to the remaining three buildings that had not yet been affected by the fire. Using the Weymiller tractor, the Weymillers and the firemen worked feverishly to knock down the joining structure, disconnecting the structure within seconds of the fire spreading to the other buildings.
The fire was officially over some 24 hours later but the main thrust and damage was done within a couple of hours from the initial alarm. Besides the loss of the two main buildings, 400 of the 2,200 sows in the sow confinement perished, plus all 480 sows with litters in the farrowing house were consumed.
Investigators suspect the cause of the fire to be the accumulation of heavy snow collapsing a section of the roof on the gestation barn. The roof collapse severed LP and electrical connections, igniting the beginning stages of the fire.
Following the fire was the clean-up effort. Some 200 people had arrived and offered assistance during the fire and the clean-up afterwards. Because of the nature of the disaster and the degree of debris, a professional service was contacted, taking some four weeks to remove the burnt materials.  Some of the surface cement was compromised so was cut up and removed - the cement for the manure pits was unaffected. Many of the building materials, like the plastics and steel, were sent to recycling centers. What could not be salvaged was loaded and trucked to landfills. The dead animals, with Department of Natural Resources (DNR) personnel on hand to ensure a proper removal, were rendered out.
The positives? One would think that with a number of animals and two buildings lost, other individuals depending on the production affected in a negative manner, and an overwhelming disaster, that there is nothing positive. The Weymillers think otherwise. They see the concern and support of friends and family. There was the professional execution of the four local fire departments and county road crews.  Except for one minor injury, no one was seriously hurt, a minor miracle when compared to the magnitude of the fire.
They witnessed the loss of two buildings but by saving the remaining buildings, one-third of their production capacity was rescued. They also saved the genetic base that is an important element of their operation. The sows that survived were sent to other facilities.
When the clean-up is completed, plans are underway for future construction. Depending on the weather, there exists the go-ahead to pour new cement as early as the third week of January. If everything goes according to plan, everything will be in full operation in ten months - the reconstruction finished in about four months, the breeding and farrowing operations completed in the remaining six months.
Could anything have been done differently? Dave reflected on this issue and stated that the insurance company had a walk-through last spring. With a facility this big, Dave and Ross will look at installing a sprinkler system. After an experience such as this, fire potential will be given more consideration. Engineers are always concerned with structural integrity, so that issue will also be further addressed.
The experience fighting a fire this large has alerted individuals to re-examining future protocol. Local fire departments train and retrain, but now department officials are going to make a more concerned effort to familiarize their departments with local confinement facilities. Because of the sheer size, the firefighters are going to have a more active role in being knowledgeable with the “lay” of the facilities. With this knowledge, the departments will be able to recognize and to react more aggressively in combating future fires, a knowledge that will be instrumental in saving the business operations of local livestock producers.
Ross and Dave plan to submit a much-appreciated thank you to the public in the future, when everything has settled down. They feel very fortunate to be able to live in a community such as theirs. “Faith gets you through something like this,” observes Dave, referring to 1st John 4:4, which reads, “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.”
Having survived a 500-year flood two years ago and a major fire this winter, the Weymillers have truly survived almost biblical afflictions, water and fire.  This farm family is now ready to settle down and experience a “normal” life.