Barns, cattle lost in fire near Verndale

A Wing River Township farm was severely damaged by fire on Thursday night, Nov. 12, according to Deputy Bryan Savaloja of the Wadena County Sheriff's Office.

The fire was reported just after 11:30 p.m. Thursday and the Verndale Fire Department was paged to respond. The Schoon Farms are about 5 miles north of U.S. Highway 10.

Several barns were a complete loss, according to the sheriff's office, while others suffered severe damage from smoke and fire. A number of cattle perished in the fire as well.

Assisting on scene were the Wadena and Staples Fire Departments.

The fire is still under investigation by the Wadena County Sheriff's Office and Minnesota State Fire Marshall's Office. A cause of the fire is unknown at this time.