A home and pole barn were destroyed in separate fires in Jefferson County Friday night.
A home owned by Jeff Smith in the 15,000 block of North Campground Lane east of Mt. Vernon was a total loss after a fire started in an attached garage and moved through the attic of the home, eventually burning off the roof.
Firemen were able to help the Smith family get some items out of the home before the fire spread. A pickup truck and a side by side inside the garage were destroyed along with a large camper parked outside the garage.
The State Fire Marshal’s office was called to investigate the cause of the fire, which is currently listed as undetermined. The fire was discovered about 20 minutes after Smith arrived home and the family smelled smoke. The fire call came in at 8:53 pm with firemen on the scene for about two hours. Mt. Vernon City, Bluford, Kell, Wayne City, and Centralia Fire Protection District provided mutual aid on the scene. Salem and Irvington provided change of quarters at the Jefferson Fire Station in the event of another fire.
Firemen were on the scene of a pole barn fire when they received the call of the house fire. The pole barn on the Robert Cooper property in the 19,000 block of North Windsong Lane northeast of Texico was fully engulfed when the fire department arrived. The barn was a total loss. Some tools and other items inside were also a total loss. The cause of the fire is under investigation. The fire call came in at 8:20 Friday night. Firemen were on the scene about an hour. Mt. Vernon City and Kell Firemen provided mutual aid assistance.
