Fire claims ranch building

A single ranch shop was destroyed by a Feb. 2 fire with undetermined cause.
The Big Timber Volunteer Fire Department was paged to a structure fire at 2:35 p.m. after the owner of the property at 763 Stockade Road called to report that the shop was ablaze with explosives inside and “about to blow.”
Sweet Grass County responders called for mutual aid from Stillwater County and arrived at the remote residence in 45 minutes via both Bridger Creek and Hump Creek roads.
The Absarokee Volunteer Fire Department was first on scene. Absarokee is approximately 17 miles away from the location, however map directions indicate an hour drive time.
The property is located approximately 30 miles southeast of Big Timber near the Stillwater County line. The registered owners are Scott and Georgi Hamel of Absarokee, according to the Montana Cadastral.
BTVFD Chief Kris Novotny said the ranch had a single main residence located approximately 30 yards to the west and upwind of the burning building. A second hay shed was also located adjacent to the structure.
The shop was fully involved upon arrival of first responders. Novotny said the building had burned down enough at that point that the other buildings were not threatened. The shop and its contents were a total loss.
Novotny said there did not appear to be explosives in the building and attributed that part of the initial report to the panicked state of the reporting party.
As of 6 p.m., Novotny said the crews were using an excavator provided by the Sweet Grass County Road Department to tear down the building for better access.
“It’s currently making its way into the building so we can get in and put it out,” he said.
Novotny expected BTVFD to stay on scene for a couple hours to continue mop up operations. Fire crews were back in town at 8:08 p.m., according to Sweet Grass County Dispatch logs.
A total of 25 firefighters arrived on scene after the initial page, including firefighters from Reed Point, Columbus and Absarokee.
In total, Novotny said BTVFD had two engines, a water tender, an excavator, one command and one support vehicle at the property. Two Sweet Grass County Sheriff’s deputies and a Sweet Grass County Ambulance Service crew also responded. The ambulance cleared the scene at 7:06 p.m.
“We have people inside with air packs doing mop up,” Novotny said an hour earlier. “As far away as we are, I felt better having them here.”
Stillwater County also offered mutual support during the fire. Columbus Fire and Rescue responded with one engine, Reed Point provided a water tender and Absarokee brought an engine, a water tender and a brush fire truck.
Novotny said the cause of the fire was undetermined as of press time.
Two BTVFD engines and a command vehicle were re-paged to the scene just after 1 a.m. Feb. 3. A smouldering pile from the excavation had reignited. The five night responders returned home at approximately 5:30 a.m.