Area firefighters and emergency officials spent nearly eight hours working to get a barn engulfed in flames under control Tuesday morning, only hours after subduing a house fire Monday night.

The barn fire, which took place at about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday on Haystack Road and Rons Way in the Beulah community of Mount Airy, left about 150 bales of hay ruined and two tractors destroyed. The property is owned by the Johnson Farm Operations Inc., which is out of Dobson.

As of Tuesday night, Assistant Fire Marshal Earl Mounce said the cause of the barn fire had yet to be determined because it was still under investigation.

“When hay catches on fire it is difficult to extinguish,” he said. “The firefighters had to spread the hay out and let it burn.”

The Skull Camp, Pine Ridge, Franklin and Central Surry fire departments responded to the scene, which Mounce said took the firefighters seven to eight hours to get under control.

There were no reports of injuries at the barn fire.

Only a few hours earlier on Monday evening, Skull Camp, Pine Ridge, Franklin, and White Plains fire departments along with Mount Airy Rescue Squad and Surry County Emergency Services responded to a 8:31 p.m. call to a structure fire at 149 Twin Oaks Drive in the Franklin community of Mount Airy.

Franklin Volunteer Fire Department Chief Harold Hooker said the electrical fire started at the rear of the split level house at an electrical outlet, climbed its way up the wall to the lower attic and spread to the upper attic.

He said the resident, Jeff George, noticed the fire and tried to extinguish it himself, but was unsuccessful.

“We brought the fire under control quickly—in about 15 minutes,” Hooker said. “The fire was contained to the attic.”

While the house did sustain some water damage, the resident was not injured and was assisted by the local American Red Cross, Hooker said. He added that the home will need some construction, but will be livable again.

Hooker said when dealing with home fires it’s better to call 911 immediately instead of assessing the fire and attempting to put it out first.

“It’s better to call 911 in the beginning so the fire department can be en route to the location,” he said. “That way the damage hasn’t spread as quickly and the fire becomes worse.”

Contact Erin C. Perkins at eperkins@mtairynews.com or 719-1952.