Stonington — Firefighters spent much of Monday extinguishing the smoldering remains of a hay-filed barn that burned to the ground earlier in the day.

The two-story, 4,000-square-foot barn at 630A Al Harvey Road is located on the property of White Oak Farm, a former dairy farm owned by Scott Cheetham. The barn was stacked full of hay at the time of the fire, first reported at about 12:50 p.m.

Old Mystic Fire Chief Kenneth Richards Jr. said 75 percent of the barn was in flames when firefighters arrived and little could be done to save the structure. An unknown number of chickens were killed in the fire.

Firefighters used water from a nearby pond to fight the fire and Richards said he called in several area departments to assist in manpower and provide more water from tankers.

Richards said the local and state fire marshal’s offices will investigate the cause of the fire. He expects the fire to smolder for days because of the amount of hay involved. He said an excavator will be used to dig into the hay to access hot spots.

A tenant on the property said in addition to hay, the barn contained some antiques and various tools. Horses and cows on the property were not harmed.

 - Greg Smith