A fire killed a number of chickens at a farm in Connecticut, according to officials.
On Sunday, it was reported that firefighters said the fire broke out in a 50 foot by 600 foot operating chicken coop at Hillandale Farms.
According to the report, crews from 16 surrounding departments and more than 100 firefighters responded to the fire.
The Colchester Fire Department said there were issues with water and required more tankers.
No injuries from the fire were reported.
A video of the fire was posted to Twitter.
January 28th: More than 100 firefighters battled a huge fire at a commercial egg farm (Hillandale Farm, Bozrah, Connecticut, USA).
— James Melville 🚜 (@JamesMelville) January 30, 2023
Hillandale Farms is one of the top egg producers in the US, raising over 20 million chickens for eggs. pic.twitter.com/rucYbrqsIK
John Way, a safety officer for the Bozrah Volunteer Fire Co., said he could not confirm the local reporting citing The Salvation Army saying roughly 100,000 chickens were killed.
According to Hillandale Farms’ website, the company “raises over 20 million chickens for eggs and is one of the top 5 egg producers in the country!”
The farm explains it handles “everything about their raising and care, except hatching them. We are still family-owned and operated and we still care about the safety and conditions of our birds.”
The website states the chickens “get only vegetarian feed, and we’ve developed many proprietary techniques and technologies to increase their safety and comfort.”
Similarly, in May 2022, a fire broke out at a commercial egg farm in Minnesota.
It was reported at the time that the fire likely left thousands of chickens dead.
A spokesperson for Forsman Farms said, “Overnight, a fire destroyed one of our barns at our Howard Lake farm. No one was injured and we are grateful that first responders were quickly on scene to put out the fire.”
The statement continues, “Unfortunately, chickens were lost because of the fire. We are evaluating the extent of the damage – which appears to be confined to a single structure – as well as investigating the cause of the fire.”
No people were reported to be injured.
