A cause is still uncertain as FarmLinks at Pursell Farms works with the insurance carrier to determine the extent of the damage.
The building was completely burned, along with everything inside. The nine-year old maintenance facility is a total loss.
"We're still in the process of gathering the facts," says Erle Fairly, FarmLinks president."We're working closely with the fire investigators and with the insurance representatives. But it seems pretty apparent that lightning was a factor."
The Fayetteville Volunteer Fire Department, Sylacauga Fire Department, Lay Lake Volunteer Fire Department and Marble Valley Volunteer Fire Department worked together to contain the fire that morning and succeeded in keeping the fire from damaging other nearby facilities.
Though damages are still being assessed and no exact amount has been identified, the team estimates the loss to be approximately two to four million dollars. Along with maintenance equipment such as Toro mowers, utility trucks and aerification units, Tru-Turf greens rollers, Wacker Neusson equipment, a Freylit wash station and a Club Car utility cart, nearly 30 years' worth of records and notes kept in the farm director's office was lost to the blaze.
Members of the golf industry community and partners in The Experience at FarmLinks have already come together to lend equipment and to offer encouragement.
"The outpouring of support from our friends and partners, including Jerry Pate Turf & Irrigation, Birmingham Country Club, Willow Point Golf and Country Club, Limestone Springs Golf Course and many others has been tremendous," says Mark Langner, FarmLinks's director of agronomy.
The rebuilding of the maintenance facility is already underway, and the FarmLinks team is working to maintain course conditions at the level of excellence that has come to be expected, says Fairly.
"We have suffered a significant loss, but we have also been given a rare opportunity," he says. "As a 'living laboratory' that endeavors to provide solutions-oriented programs, we have gained knowledge and insights from end-users, from partners and from industry leaders. And we are now in a unique position to collaborate with these professionals and with new partners to fine tune an environmentally sensitive facility around these experiences and take course maintenance operations to a whole new level."
No injuries were reported when a major fire burned the Toro maintenance facility to the ground Mar. 9.
During the storm early Wednesday morning, a guard was called near that part of the facility by a report of a power outage at roughly 4:30 a.m. He noticed the flames and reported the fire.
Including the farm manager, seven people held their office in the building. The facility was also a public space for events like the twice-annual Outback campout weekend.