Amazingly, no chickens were killed, but fumes ran high as Limestone County crews responded to a chicken-house blaze Thursday afternoon.

Oak Grove Fire Chief Charles Claunch said an electrical short is to blame for a small fire that broke out in an industrial chicken coop off of Mooresville Road in the Thach area.

Three volunteer fire departments, Oak Grove, Piney Chapel and East Limestone, were called out to the L.A. Newby farm but by the time crews arrived, Claunch said a farm worker had put out approximately 80 percent of the flames with a garden hose.

Claunch said his one-engine department calls for backup with any fire reported at a large structure like the chicken house, because of all the chemicals and gases that are like large propane tanks. He said large structure fires like that are “impossible” to extinguish.

It took approximately 2 minutes for crews to hose down the rest of the fire, but inspecting the coop for any further dangers and clearing out smoke kept firefighters on the scene for several more minutes, Claunch said.