PHELPS, N.Y. -- An overnight fire destroyed the Byrne Dairy on Route 96 in the town of Phelps.
A long night for volunteer firefighters who remain on scene as they work to level what's left of the Byrne Dairy building. According to deputies, the building suffered extensive damage and is a 'total loss.'
Video provided by neighbor Chris Burke shows the fire early on in the morning. Burke says he and his family woke up to the smell of smoke and could see flames coming out of the building. That is when he began recording the video on his cell phone.
The call came in to 911 just after 2 a.m. and when crews arrived on scene, the metal roof was fully engulfed in flames and eventually collapsed. Work now begins to level the building and get to all the hot spots.
The Fire Chief says there was a delay in calling in this fire when employees called the manager first. He said it was between 15 - 30 minutes before anyone called 911.
"We should have gotten the call initially, because they said it was in the office part," said Ron Nieskes, Phelps Fire Chief. "At this point I'm saying we probably could have saved part of the building. But because it had such a head start on us, there was nothing we could do."
Nieskes says the lesson to be learned here is that anytime you smell smoke, call 911. He says, "We'd rather go out on false reports than just sit back and wait until we have to be faced with something like this."
A spokesman for Byrne Dairy says employees made it out safely. The 16 full time workers there will be moved to different locations within Ontario County.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.