Fifteen racing horses are dead, with 10 more escaped after a barn fire in Springfield early this morning. This comes on the eve of the racing season at Lincoln Downs Race Track. Of the 15 horses killed in the fire, 13 were thoroughbreds with the other 2 being saddle horses.
“Those are my best friends,” said Albert Ramos, a jockey out of Miami, Fla. “I love those horses more than I do people. I feel like I want to cry.”
Arson is suspected as the cause of the blaze. An arson squad was sent to the scene and Fire Chief Bernard Perry said the fire is “definitely suspicious.”
Only several rows of charred wooden supports remain of the one-story structure. Dan Bucci, assistant general manager of the track thinks the fire could be of an incendiary nature, because of the flames coming from the center of the barn. “The only heaters and electrical outlets were in the track rooms at the ends of the barn.”
The fire started at 4 a.m. and smoldered until noon.
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