Name: Blaze at Nebraska City's Arbor Day Farm won't stop annual AppleJack Festival
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Blaze at Nebraska City's Arbor Day Farm won't stop annual AppleJack Festival

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Get local news delivered to your inbox!Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You are the owner of this article.You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisBlaze at Nebraska City's Arbor Day Farm won't stop annual AppleJack FestivalShare thisAn electrical malfunction sparked a blaze that engulfed the restaurant area on the north side of the historic apple house at Arbor Day Farm in Nebraska City, just two days before the annual AppleJack Festival.Firefighters on Wednesday were able to contain the blaze quickly, saving the L-shaped building that houses offices, the Apple House Market, an apple sorting area and storage, although there’s little left of the small restaurant area and smoke and heat damaged the market and offices.“Everything in the Apple House Market is pretty much a loss,” said Austin Mackrill, vice president of Arbor Day Farm. “Wine bottles were popping their corks, and everything is black.”But the historic barn a few hundred yards away was untouched, as were the orchard, trails and the tree adventure area on the farm's 260 acres, and Mackrill said they will continue with the festival, which starts Saturday.Multiple calls came into the Nebraska City dispatcher at 6:30 p.m. with reports of an explosion and smoke. Firefighters arrived to flames shooting 30 feet in the air, said Nebraska City Volunteer Fire Chief Rob Schreiner.Firefighters immediately made it a three-alarm fire, and got help from neighboring fire departments, Schreiner said. They were able to contain the blaze, keeping it from moving into the offices in the loft. Had it spread there, Schreiner said, fire would have gutted the entire structure.“If it had gotten upstairs, we’d probably still be there dousing the fire,” he said.Instead, it was largely under control by 8 p.m.No one was inside when the fire started, Schreiner said. The explosions were likely from a window air conditioner and pop machine, he said.Mackrill said he’s thankful firefighters arrived so quickly, and now the Arbor Day Farm staff are pivoting to make sure they're ready for the festival.They plan to move the Apple House Market to the historic barn. They are calling local suppliers to see what products they can offer on short notice, and they’ll also contact some new businesses to see if they’d like to sell items at the festival, Mackrill said.Because of the pandemic, Arbor Day Farm and city officials decided to spread the festival out over three weekends and sell tickets in advance to contain the size of crowds.Typically, Mackrill said, the festival draws about 10,000 people, and this year they expect about 5,000 each of the three weekends.They hope to rebuild Porter’s BBQ, the small restaurant named after the original owners of the farm. Despite the smoke and heat damage to the market, the structure is OK, Mackrill said.Reach the writer at 402-473-7226 or mreist.On Twitter @LJSreistGet local news delivered to your inbox!A fire broke out Wednesday at Arbor Day Farm in Nebraska City.&nbsp;An electrical malfunction sparked a blaze that engulfed the restaurant area on the north side of the historic apple house at Arbor Day Farm on Wednesday.An electrical malfunction sparked a blaze that engulfed the restaurant area on the north side of the historic apple house at Arbor Day Farm on Wednesday.Nebraska City volunteer firefighters declared a three-alarm fire Wednesday at Arbor Day Farm.An electrical malfunction sparked a blaze that engulfed the restaurant area on the north side of the historic apple house at Arbor Day Farm in 2020.{{title}}{{summary}}You don't have any notifications.Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.Topics

Get local news delivered to your inbox!Please subscribe to keep reading. You can cancel at any time.Loading&amp;hellp;{{title}}{{description}}{{banner}}(renews at {{format_dollars}}{{start_price}}{{format_cents}}/month + tax){{tagline}}{{special_title}}{{html}}You are the owner of this article.You have permission to edit this article.© 2022 Lee EnterprisesShare ThisBlaze at Nebraska City's Arbor Day Farm won't stop annual AppleJack FestivalShare thisAn electrical malfunction sparked a blaze that engulfed the restaurant area on the north side of the historic apple house at Arbor Day Farm in...

Blaze at Nebraska City's Arbor Day Farm won't stop annual AppleJack Festival

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