Fire destroys farmhouse

A two-story farmhouse near Highway 32 in Ste. Genevieve County burned to the ground early Monday morning.

Wolf Creek Assistant Fire Chief Steve Young said a passerby on Highway 32 saw a glow and decided to drive down Dorlac Road to investigate. The motorist called 911 after seeing a house on fire.

Firefighters were dispatched to the house on Dorlac at about 1:30 a.m. The first firefighters arrived within 10 minutes to find flames coming through the roof.

Young said soon after they arrived, the second story of the house collapsed. The fire also spread to a few outbuildings but firefighters were able to save those.

To get additional manpower and water, the fire call was upgraded from a first-alarm to a second-alarm fire. Firefighters from Doe Run, Farmington, Park Hills, Weingarten, Desloge, Big River, Zell, Lake Forest, Leadington and Bonne Terre assisted.

Nobody had been living in the house for some time and the electricity was shut off.

“The fire marshal’s office and the sheriff’s department are looking into it,” Young said.

No injuries were reported.