Thousands of turkeys lost in Jennie-O fire

About 20,000 turkeys got roasted prematurely Saturday afternoon when a Grove City barn burned to the ground.

The Meeker County Sheriff’s Office reports it got a 911 call at 2:05 p.m. Oct. 20, reporting a structure fire at the Jennie-O Turkey Farm in rural Grove City.

Deputies arrived and found one of the turkey barns fully engulfed in flames. Fire departments from Grove City, Litchfield, Atwater, Paynesville and Eden Valley also responded to the scene.

Firefighters kept the fire from spreading to adjacent buildings, but one 400-foot by 72-foot barn was completely destroyed. All the turkeys in the barn, which where about four to five weeks old, were killed in the blaze.

No people were injured and the value of the lost birds is estimated at $450,000. Jennie-O employees suspect a faulty electrical circuit might have sparked the fire. The State Fire Marshall will investigate the incident.

(Jorge Sosa is a staff writer for the Hutchinson Leader. He can be reached at sosa@hutchinsonleader.com)