Fire destroys barn in Canton; animals rescued

CANTON — A barn owned by the teRiele Family Dairy farm burned to the ground Wednesday, but no animals were injured.

The barn, at 1926 Old DeKalb Road, was used to store hay, several tractors, an electric generator and about 30 barrels of motor oil, according to Josef M. teRiele, who runs the company with his brother, Gerard J. teRiele.

Mr. teRiele said the 40-by-170-foot wooden barn, built in the 1880s, was insured, although he could not estimate what the damage would be.

"The main problem right now is the electricity comes from that barn, so we have no power to the house or other barns," he said.

James R. teRiele, who works on the family dairy farm, said he was in the shop repairing a baler when he smelled smoke. He and the others got two cars and a tractor out of the barn before firefighters arrived.

Although a smaller barn, about 40 feet away, which housed about 40 calves, was damaged, workers were able to get the animals out in time.

Canton, Pyrites, Morley, Rensselaer Falls, DeKalb, Pierrepont and Potsdam fire departments responded to the call made at 5:53 p.m., St. Lawrence County sheriff's deputies said. They did not comment on what started the fire.