NEW HAVEN — Three municipal fire departments — New Haven, Middlebury and Vergennes — responded to a fire that flared up around noon on Thursday on a farm just south of Tourterelle restaurant on Route 7 in New Haven. Passersby observed black smoke ballooning from the property.
According to New Haven Fire Chief Alan Mayer, the fire destroyed a piece of farm equipment — a Claas chopper. Tyler Steady, the chopper’s owner, had been sharpening its knives when the blaze occurred.
“Unfortunately, you see an awful lot of those fires with choppers,” Mayer said. “You’ve got to be careful when you’re sharpening knives, because they throw a lot of sparks, and there’s a lot of dust and chaff and debris inside those things that can catch fire.”
The chopper had been sitting outside Steady’s shop when the fire occurred, and the flames touched the edges of a shed and an old sugarhouse. Firefighters were able to keep the flames under control, and Mayer recorded minimal damage to the buildings. No one was hurt in the fire.
Mayer was grateful for the response of additional departments.
“During the days it can be tough, because we have a lot of people who work out of town, and not a lot of people around when we have calls,” he said. “That’s why each and every department depends on each other. We appreciate them.”