CENTERBURG — With his car on fire, Randall L. Van Houten of Mount Vernon drove off U.S. 36 last night and stopped almost against a barn; the car fire then set the barn on fire. The property is owned by Steve Kennedy.
The barn at 7677 Columbus Road was not heavily damaged, according to Lt. Jason Whipple of the Central Ohio Joint Fire District. Whipple said he was first on the scene with engines and eight firefighters.
Because of the size of the barn, estimated to be 40-by-80-foot, he called for mutual aid in the form of engines and water tankers from Mount Vernon, Fredericktown, Homer and Hartford fire departments. Altogether, he said, 30 firefighters were at the scene.
Whipple said the fire was confined to one corner of the barn, which is used for storage. Some furniture and a small amount of black gun powder was burned.
Discuss this story Car fire turns into more as barn ignites