A fire in Winona caused significant damage to the Minnesota Equestrian Center, and fire investigators are working to determine what started the blaze.

According to the Wilson Fire Department, the fire was called in around 11:55 a.m. Thursday.

The equestrian center consists of a complex of barns and show arenas that are interconnected together and have attached entrances.

When fire crews arrived, they found a barn in the structure was fully engulfed and the attached residence “heavily involved in fire.”

Due to the size of the fire, it was decided by fire crews to remove a breezeway that connected the arena with a bulldozer to prevent the fire from spreading further.

The Wilson Fire Department said it took nearly eight hours for 100 personnel to bring the emergency to a resolution, with an estimated 120,000 gallons of water pumped onto the fire and over 50 round trips from tanker operators to water sources to haul water to the scene.

While no fire personnel or people were injured in the incident, three animals were killed in the fire – two horses and a cat.

The arena, according to the fire department, received minimal damage. However, the barn and residence building were a total loss.

Of the 128,000 square feet that make up the equestrian center, 31,000 square feet of it were completely lost, while another 45,000 received minor smoke and heat damage.

“It was hard; kind of surreal,” said owner Jessica Rivers. “There’s been an outpouring of sadness.”

She says workers raced to get all the horses they could to safety.

“So many thousands and thousands of customers that kind of call this home several times a year. I think it means a lot to everybody,” Rivers added.

The center has been part of the horse training and showing community for more than 20 years in southeastern Minnesota.

“My daughter and granddaughter have shown up here several times; it kind of just hit home,” said Donna Hanson. “It’s tough, it’s really tough to look at.”

Hanson says the community will rally around the centers as they figure out what’s next.

“The horse-showing community is a big community,” Hanson noted.

Jose Mota, the long-time manager at the equestrian center, lost his family’s home in the fire.

“We absolutely love Jose and his family, we’ve been here for them and we’re going to continue to be there for him,” added Rivers.

A fundraiser has begun to help Jose’s family, who escaped the fire.

In the midst of this tragedy, Rivers says the support of the community has brought comfort.

“It’s been a really beautiful thing,” she said.

“The majority of those people were volunteers who left their jobs or families, canceled appointments or skipped their errands to respond to this fire,” the Wilson Fire Department said in a statement. “The volunteer fire service as a whole is struggling to recruit new members to fill gaps in their ranks. Fire like this are exactly why we need a robust, well-prepared volunteer firefighting force in Winona County. Any delays or staffing shortages may have resulted in a much worse outcome in what was already a devastating day for MEC.”

An investigation into the fire is still ongoing, but the Wilson Fire Department says additional information points to the fire not being suspicious.