A family of seven has been displaced from their home at a Molalla berry farm after a devastating fire Sunday afternoon.
Molalla Fire District crews responded to the scene of a reported barn fire in the 13500 block of South Vick Road to find the shop heavily involved.
Crews from Molalla, Clackamas, Canby, Colton, Hubbard, Monitor and Mt. Angel aggressively attacked the blaze in an attempt to stop the spread, but the building was deemed a total loss.
The fire broke out in a rural area with no fire hydrants, so water trucks had to drive water to the scene.
It took firefighters roughly three hours before the fire was brought under control. There were no reported civilian or firefighter injuries.
Molalla Public Information Officer Bryce Estabrook said the approximately 3,750-square-foot shop housed equipment and storage for the berry farm, with a portion of the building having also been converted into a residence.
The fire did displace one family, Ivan and Anastacia Burkoff and their five children. A GoFundMe campaign to benefit the family had raised nearly $22,000 as of Tuesday afternoon.
According to the GoFundMe page, Anastacia Burkoff was home with her two youngest children when the fire broke out.
“She woke up to the sound of crackling wood and only saw thick black smoke,” the page said. “Grabbing her children and running out the front door, she just barely made it out with the clothes on their backs before the roof collapsed in the fire.”
The family “lost everything,” the post said and is starting over from scratch.
Estabrook said additional firefighters had been called to the scene due to high temperatures and the physical demands of fighting this fire.
A hazmat unit from Clack Fire helped identify potentially hazardous chemicals at the burning facility.
Molalla Fire reminds residents to avoid fire scenes during an emergency, as the extra traffic can make it difficult for first responders to access the area.
