SUSSEX, N.B. – A Sussex farmer is continuing to assess the damage following a massive barn collapse Wednesday morning that killed 27 cows.
Robin Manning of Manning Farms said he figures the cost of the damages from the roof collapse will reach around $250,000.
“The whole roof had landed completely on both herds because it was shortly after feeding time so the bulk of the herd was underneath this barn eating,” he said, standing outside the rubble.
Manning’s barn is one of at least three that have collapsed related to snow build-up. But he doesn’t believe his roof collapsed under the weight of the snow.
He said snow sliding from an adjacent building knocked his roof down.
“We think it came off this roof,” he said, pointing to snow sliding down one of the back buildings. “Cut the pillars off and then she laid herself down.”
He said the family took care not to let snow build up on certain parts of the roof.
“We removed some snow from the valleys because that’s where it was building heavy,” he said. “But this actual barn here had maybe eight inches on it.”
In Manning’s case, he was able to save 88 cows. He said he owes a lot that to community pitching in to help following the collapse.
“It saved a lot of cows and I think that probably affected me more than the roof going down,” he said.
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Despite the damage, structural engineers say snow isn’t necessarily the only factor that can cause a roof to collapse.
Jean-Maurice Chevarie, a structural engineer with Valron Engineers in Moncton, said there are many factors that can lead to it happening.
“Older buildings it really it depends,” he said.”Some were built very strong and others there could be issues with the details.”
He said a roof needs to be constructed properly to handle specific weight loads.
“Wood trusses they are very strong and they are light weight cost effective,” he said. “However, they have to be installed properly and they have to be braced properly.”
Chevarie said the best way to avoid a collapse is to look for signs of stress on a building and be aware of any snow build-up.
“Survey and look for signs of movement,” he said. “Really the big thing is look any significant amount of snow accumulation.”
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