Fire erupts at Reddick feed store; witnesses report loud explosion around 7 p.m.

Marion County Fire Rescue crews remained on scene Wednesday morning after a fire tore through a commercial property used as a feed store in Reddick late Tuesday.

No injuries have been reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.

MCFR indicates they were dispatched to 15398 NW 44th Avenue Road at 7:33 p.m., after multiple 911 callers reported smoke and flames visible, and responding crews could see a large column of black smoke from miles away.

According to MCFR, “Engine #11 arrived on scene at 7:37 p.m. to find the Tiz Whiz Feed and Hay store fully engulfed in flames, with nearby homes threatened. As firefighters quickly deployed hose lines, multiple explosions were heard.”

Engine 11 was joined on scene by other units for a total crew of 29.

MCFR also publicly thanked the sheriff’s office on social media for lending their new skid steer. “That piece of machinery was a true force multiplier in dismantling the building and contents,” they wrote in a Facebook post.

The store manager, Christina Harris, who has worked for the business since 2013, said their phones have been ringing constantly since the fire.

“A lot of people have been reaching out to support us — customers, vendors and other feed stores,” Harris said. She said the store has five employees and closed at 5 p.m. Tuesday. Then, about 7:30 p.m., they got the call that the business was on fire.

“Fourteen hours later, the fire is still smoldering. That is what hay does,” Harris said Wednesday morning. She and her team were staged at a nearby Dollar General because she said “the smoke is too thick at the property still.”

Harris said they were able to save one delivery truck, but thinks everything else seemed lost.

Three women at a nearby farm told the Gazette they heard a loud explosion just before smoke filled the sky. “We thought at first it was thunder,” said one woman, who declined to give her name. “Then we saw the flames.”

Property records list the 2.18-acre site as owned by Wayne Davis. The 2025 property record card shows the main structure totals approximately 8,533 square feet under roof, including an 8,030-square-foot canopy, about 449 square feet of enclosed store and office space, and a 54-square-foot patio. A separate 900-square-foot open shed is also listed on the parcel.