RAMONA, Calif. — A 25,000-square-foot building with chickens inside caught fire around 5:30 p.m. Thursday in Ramona sending huge plumes of white smoke into the air.
The Pine Hill Egg Ranch located along CA-78 is in the middle of a field of dry brush which was a big concern for firefighters. Officials say the building that was burning had 70,000 chickens inside.
"We were worried about it going into the vegetation so we were able to use those aircraft, the helicopters used a pond real close by and we used fixed-wing air tankers to do a retardant drop," said Mike Cornette with Cal-fire.
Cal Fire said that crews also kept the fire from spreading to the nearby buildings at the egg farm.
"Our priorities are life, property and the environment. Anytime we go into these situations we're always concerned about the firefighter's lives, any resident's and animal's lives so that is one our top priorities is preservation of life, he said.
Because the building was engulfed, crews couldn't go inside. Cal Fire said the fire resulted in a loss of about two million dollars, including the building and the chickens inside.
Fire crews were going through the salvage process to see if anything can be saved. Crews managed to contain this fire fairly quickly but say it's a reminder to always be prepared.
"Make sure they have all their evacuation plans in order. a structure fire could get into the devastation and this could be the next large devastating wildland fire," he said
Cal Fire crews will be out on the property through the night and even into the morning hours putting out hotspots.
The specific cause of this fire is still under investigation.
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