DELAWARE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (Hunterdon County) — A devastating barn fire in Delaware Township on Thursday, May 14, killed five horses and several cats while destroying decades of equipment and memories, according to firefighters and a fundraiser organized for the family.
Firefighters from the Delaware Township Fire Company and surrounding mutual aid departments responded Thursday morning to the blaze and arrived to find one barn fully engulfed in flames with fire spreading into the eaves of a nearby two-story detached garage.
Crews brought the main body of the fire under control in less than 20 minutes, officials said, while overhaul operations continued for nearly two hours.
Mutual aid departments assisted by supplying additional manpower, transporting water to the scene and covering local fire stations during the incident.
The Delaware Township Fire Company said 20 of its volunteers responded to the fire.
According to a GoFundMe campaign created following the fire, the blaze killed five horses identified as Mo, Ben, Buddy, Abby and Paisley, along with barn cats Batman, Thumbelina and Thumbelina’s two 4-week-old kittens.
The only surviving horse was Tilly, described as the personal horse of the owner’s daughter.
The fundraiser states the fire also destroyed 30 years of equipment and memories.
“Rose has been a pillar of kindness and generosity in my life,” the organizer wrote on the fundraising page. “She’s the type of person who would give the shirt off her back to help someone in need, and she’s been there for me through my toughest moments.”
The fundraiser says donations will help the family rebuild the barn, replace equipment and provide essentials including tack, blankets and supplies for Tilly.
“I’m reaching out to our community to help return the kindness Rose has always shown others,” the organizer wrote. “Any contribution, big or small, will make a difference as she works to recover and rebuild.”
Those wishing to support the family can do so through a GoFundMe fundraiser created following the fire.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the New Jersey Division of Fire Safety.
