Melle shocked: 580 pigs die in devastating barn fire

Melle shocked: 580 pigs die in devastating barn fire

A devastating barn fire in Melle, Osnabrück district, claimed the lives of numerous pigs early on Friday morning. At around 4:45 a.m., a driver noticed the thick smoke and alerted a family in the adjacent building. The fire department was on site within ten minutes, but the stable was already on fire when the emergency services arrived. Of the approximately 600 pigs in the stable, tragically around 580 animals, including almost 550 piglets, lost their lives. Only 20 animals could be saved, while the extinguishing work took several hours and was expected to last until the evening, as the straw stored in the stable made it difficult to extinguish the fire, reports NDR.

The fire not only resulted in a terrible loss of animals, but also caused significant damage to the stable building. According to initial estimates, the material damage amounts to around 700,000 euros. The adjoining house was spared the flames, but has become uninhabitable due to water damage. The residents, a 60-year-old man and his 57-year-old wife, were fortunately uninjured n-tv reported.

The cause of the fire remains unclear

The investigation into the cause of the fire began after the extinguishing work was completed. The fire brigade and police have ruled out a connection to previous stable fires in Melle, in which no one was injured. Experts suspect that these fires could have been caused by technical defects. In recent years, the use of technical equipment in modern animal husbandry has often been pushed into the background, which in many cases turns out to be dangerous, according to them Albert Schweitzer Foundation.

Stable fires are not uncommon in Germany. Over a hundred thousand animals burn to death every year, and the causes are varied: technical defects, short circuits or simply serious deficiencies in fire prevention. Modern animal husbandry, which often relies on cost-effective mass farming, has often given fire protection little priority. Improvements should be made urgently here, as the damage could be reduced through regular maintenance and safer storage of flammable materials.

Necessary reforms for animal protection

As the incidents in Melle show, animal protection in livestock farming is often confronted with inadequate safety precautions. Many animals that are bred for fattening are kept in narrow stables without sufficient escape options. According to animal rights activists, not only did many animals lose their lives in this fire, but in recent years thousands of animals have repeatedly died in stable fires in Germany. Political measures to improve fire protection have begun, but they often contradict the interests of factory farming.

The tragedy in Melle is an urgent wake-up call. The protection of animals must finally be a priority and must no longer be subordinated to economic considerations. A farewell to animal husbandry that focuses purely on cost-benefit would be a necessary step to improve the animals' chances of survival in emergencies like these.