Man seriously burned, dozens of horses killed in Ohio barn fire

A man was seriously burned and 44 horses were killed in a massive barn fire in Ohio.

The blaze erupted at Brant Performance Horses near Belle Center — about 67 miles northwest of Columbus — in Logan County on Saturday.

An employee of the farm noticed the fire while inside the barn around noon. Cathy Brant of Brant Performance Horses told ABC News the employee yelled fire to warn others, but an explosion occurred soon after and made the blaze even bigger.

The barn is about 60,000 square feet and had about 85 horses inside. It also had a training and performing area for the horses and living quarters for several employees, who lost their belongings in the fire.

Eric Priest, the owner of Priest Performances Horses who kept some of his clients’ horses at the barn, ran inside the structure and was caught in the explosion, suffering second- and third-degree burns to his arms, back and head. He is expected to survive but may need surgery. He was transferred to Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus.

Jason Johns, assistant fire chief of the Richland Township Fire Department, told ABC News firefighters were at the scene for about 12 hours because “the building was already starting to collapse and it wasn’t safe to enter” when they arrived, making it harder to extinguish the blaze.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the the State Fire Marshal.