Propane leak caused explosion at Kansas barn that killed 20,000 chickens, fire official says

A propane leak inside a barn filled with nearly 20,000 chickens led to an explosion after the owner turned on the furnace, Newton Fire/EMS Fire Marshal Andy Harder said Friday.

“At this point with how much damage there is, I think it is just going to go down as a freak accident that he was lucky to survive,” Harder said about the owner. “Can’t say that for the chickens.”

The owner, a “younger adult,” was not injured, Harder said. He was not identified.

An educated guess would be that the ignition from turning on the furnace to heat the building led to the explosion Thursday afternoon, he said.

The chickens were free-ranging and could come and go from the barn. About 4,000 chickens that weren’t in the building were singed or burned or had smoke inhalation and had to be humanely put down, he said; the rest died in the fire.

Firefighters were called about the explosion at 3:30 p.m. Thursday. The egg farm is located 1400 block of N. West Road, which is about a mile west of Newton.

Firefighters arrived at 3:35 p.m. and first worked to keep the propane tank from exploding, he said. Firefighters reported the entire structure collapsed at 3:48 p.m., he said, adding it is about 50 feet by 150 feet.

Harder said the building is split into two sections: a front for the egg processing side and the back where the chickens will go. The owner was back with the chickens when he heard an explosion and went outside and saw the roof “all blown up.”

He said the exposed wood inside the barn led the fire to spread quickly. There was little left after the flames were put out, he said.

This story was originally published November 22, 2024 at 3:25 PM.