Nicholas Donaldson
Farmers and others on hand for the Rainy River “Ag Day” on Saturday at the Emo Legion were given a talk that most probably didn’t want to think about.
Jacqui Empson Laporte, an environmental specialist for the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, spoke about barn fire prevention during an afternoon session.
“No one wants to talk about it because no one wants to think it will happen to them,” noted Laporte.
She outlined various causes of barn fires, including mechanical or electrical failure, misuse of equipment, and problems in the construction or maintenance in barns.
Laporte said most electrical systems needs to be specially-suited to barns because of the unique environment.
Because of the corrosive gases in barns, she noted regular industrial set-ups are not ideal–and residential fixings are even worse.
Laporte cited the example of junction boxes and recommended special ones with plastic screws and a gasket inside the cover to protect them from degradation.
She also noted the dangers of using extension cords for long periods of time and asked that farmers think about setting up permanent systems instead.
“Please put the right things in,” Laporte stressed.
One big problem is that barns are well-ventilated for the benefit of the animals, but this ventilation also helps fires spread and burn quickly.
Laporte said roughly 40 percent of barn fires have their causes reported as undetermined because the structure is completely gone.
She wants farmers to be prepared in case of a fire because there is not a lot of time when one starts.
One idea is to get an aerial picture or make a sketch of the farm, and label it using a checklist the ministry has created.
This map then can be shared with the fire department so it can become familiar with the farm before an emergency occurs.
In the example Laporte showed, labelled items included animal barns, power shut-off, fuel storage, doors/access routes, and a safe meeting place.
“It shows off what a fire department needs to know before they get there,” she explained.
Laporte said her local fire department has her farm’s map on file so they can grab it and study it on the way there.
This way, they know where to park the fire truck, where they can get more water, and where the animals can go.
“At two in the morning, they don’t know where anything is and they need to know the dangers before they will go in there,” she reasoned.
Laporte also showed off a FLIR (forward-looking infrared camera) that also can help in barn fire prevention.
The small camera attaches through the charging port on a smartphone and, after downloading an app, can be used for thermal imaging.
She said they run about $350-$400 for the hand-held “gun” ones that don’t use a phone.
Laporte recommends using it to look around the barn for hot-spots or other anomalies.
For example, a farmer could notice one fan is running hotter and using more power than others, or that a socket is not working properly.
“It can give you an idea of where to start looking,” she remarked.
Laporte also was very excited to share a project she is working on that could warn farmers about barn fires through text message.
A device would be hung in a barn in such a way that it could scan the building.
Objects would be programed into the device with normal temperatures. Laporte said if those temperatures changed drastically, the device would notify the farmer through a text.
It also could detect if a heat source moves, like if a block heater falls off a chair, and inform the farmer about that.
The farmer then knows that something is wrong and can check on it before it becomes a fire.
Laporte said this would be much better than other fire systems people ask for.
“The problem with smoke [detectors] or sprinklers is that the fire is already started,” she explained.
In her presentation, Laporte noted that with the increasing complexity of barn structures, and the addition of robots and other electronics, these barn fires are costing farmers more and more.
Mental heath also is a major concern after a barn fire, with Laporte saying that can make it difficult for farmers to carry on in the business.
She spoke about dairy farmers who had to quit the industry after a barn fire while another family had trouble dealing with their aftermath.
“It took time for them to be able to go back into the barn,” she noted.
Laporte also said public perception can be a dangerous thing after a barn fire.
She said some special interest groups will use the fire to protest animal agriculture and attempt to show farmers in a negative light.
“We had one family who lost 700 goats and were devastated, and as they were dealing with that, they had people at the end of their driveway calling them ‘murderers,'” noted Laporte.
She said the ministry has to tell people not to read comments on news stories and, in some cases, get a spokesperson for the family because it is too difficult to deal with.
Laporte also said the ministry is working on educational items to inform both farmers and the public about barn fires and the impact they have.
