A 100-year-old barn in rural Tracy was destroyed by fire Sunday, Jan. 13, when the hay inside was set ablaze.

Firefighters arrived on the 14000 block of West Bethany Road around 1:30 p.m. and found heavy smoke coming from the barn, according to Tracy Fire Department Division Chief Andy Kellogg.

The 5,000-square-foot barn was storing hay that was roughly six months to one year old, Kellogg said.

As firefighters fought to extinguish the fire, a portion of the building began to collapse, and firefighters turned their focus on keeping the fire contained and away from a nearby former dairy milking house and another barn, according to Kellogg.

It took firefighters three to four hours to get the fire under control, he said.

No injuries were reported, and no nearby livestock were harmed.

The cause of the blaze is still under investigation, and the loss was valued at $130,000 for the building and its contents.

Brownish smoke could be seen from several miles away Sunday afternoon. Officials said the fire was expected to continue smoldering through Wednesday, Jan. 16.

• Contact Denise Ellen Rizzo at 830-4225 or drizzo@tracypress.com.