Hundred of pigs die in farm blaze

More than 800 pigs have died in a fire at a farm in Lincolnshire.

About 600 piglets and 168 sows were killed in the blaze at North More Farm in Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, at 10pm on Friday (27 August).

Fire crews from across the region tackled the blaze, which was caused by an electrical fault, until about 4am on Saturday.

The fire tore through three connecting sheds housing the pigs after it started in the farm’s central unit.

Just one piglet survived the blaze, which caused “100% damage” to the unit, fire officers said.

Steve Wright, station manager at Gainsborough, said the fire crews did an exceptional job to get the fire under control.

“There was a barn full of hay nearby that we had concerns about, but we managed to contain the fire.

“All the crews were touched by the loss of such a large amount of livestock.

“But one good thing was the fact that one little piglet was saved because it had been able to get near the door.”

It was the second time a fire had occurred on the farm.

In February 2000 pigs were killed at a breeding unit on the farm, again after an electrical fault sparked a blaze.

Mr Wright added: “The owners were visibly upset as you can imagine and we have now offered to work with them to try to prevent this happening again.”

Farm worker Darren Schofield, who works keeps sheep on the grounds of Northmoor Farm, told the Lincolnshire Echo: “I heard about what happened and came down to see for myself.

“It’s a bad thing to have taken place considering there was a similar fire earlier this year.”