Raging fire engulfs truck shop along Hwy. 37

February 10, 2016
Charlea Mills
      A massive fire burned one building down and spread to a field off of Highway 37 near Butterfield on Monday afternoon. No one was hurt in the blaze.
      According to the call log at the Barry County E9-1-1 Center, a call came in at 12:56 p.m. on February 8 about a fire at a truck repair shop near Payless Auto Salvage just off of the highway. The address of the fire was 11679 Private Road 1084.
      In two minutes, fire departments were dispatched. By 1:09 p.m., firefighters were on the scene working on the blaze.
      Even being on the scene 13 minutes after the call came in, it took firefighters from multiple districts over three hours to put out the flames in the shop building, as well as the field next to it. After the fire had been burning for an hour, an explosion sent a fire ball and mushroom cloud of black smoke into the air. The cause of the explosion is unknown at this time, but it appeared that there were tires and tools inside the burning building, as well as at least one vehicle.
      Cassville Fire Chief Millard Andrews took over the scene, even though it was in Butterfield Fire’s district. Andrews confirmed that no one was hurt in the fire. He also said that the incident is under investigation by the State Fire Marshall, so no comments can be made regarding the details of the scene.
Fire fighters worked tirelessly in the extremely windy conditions Monday afternoon, bringing tankers full of water and preventing the flames from spreading. The wind fueled the fire so quickly that tanker trucks were rushing back and forth all afternoon, utilizing as many gallons as water as they could to combat the flames taking the building to the ground.
      On the far side of the field that caught fire are multiple modular homes. Firefighters were able to stop the spread in the field to protect those homes.
Nearby buildings Payless Auto Salvage and a counseling and treatment facility were thankfully unscathed by the flames.
      Cassville Fire, Butterfield Fire, Purdy Fire, Monett City Fire, Monett Rural Fire, Exeter Fire, Wheaton Fire, the Barry County Sheriff’s Department, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and CoxHealth EMS were all on scene to help with extinguishing the fire, traffic control and medical assistance if it was necessary.