More than $27,000 has been raised for a Carroll County turkey farmer after a January fire killed 16,000 birds and destroyed critical equipment.
Staying in a camper near a turkey house on his farm so he could make sure the birds had ample heat during a period of bitter cold, Brian Floyd awoke in the early morning hours of Sunday, Jan. 21, and looked out the window.
What he saw was his worst nightmare.
“I woke up just before 2 o’clock in the morning, looked out my camper window and there were flames coming out of the front end of the building,” Floyd said. “I jumped up, grabbed my phone and started calling 911. I’m on the South Carroll County Fire Department and I knew the sooner they could get here the more of this we can try to save.”
Getting propane tanks turned off that were feeding into heaters inside the turkey house was the first priority, Floyd said.
“I ran out there dressed in the same thing I was born in and got my propane shut off,” Floyd said. “All I could think about was getting it shut off before the fire burns through the propane line and really sets the building on fire. But, by the time I got the propane shut off there was fire coming out of the building three-quarters of the way down through the vents. By the time I got back to my camper and put some clothes on, put some shoes and socks on, and got the power shut off to the building, the first end of the building was already collapsing. That was about the time that the fire department showed up, about 15 minutes after I called them.”
Despite the efforts of those at the scene, the fire spread and eventually the entire building collapsed, Floyd said. “The fire department left about 3 a.m.,” he said. “It all happened pretty quick.”
Insurance officials have told Floyd that propane issues were the likely source of the fire.
“Normally I would have my propane shut off, but it got so cold,” Floyd said of the heaters in the turkey house which is located at his farm just off Highway 412, about a mile from Gobbler Cemetery.
BIG LOSSES
Floyd, whose brother is Eureka Springs Police Chief Billy Floyd, said insurance will pay out $250,000, but the cost to build a new turkey house is about $650,000. “Insurance will only pay out enough to cover the mortgage until the building is rebuilt and operational,” according to a GoFund-Me campaign organized to help Floyd. “It will not pay enough to rebuild the building that is needed to continue operating. This building was the only building on the farm that the farm can’t operate without. To be blunt: if Brian can’t rebuild this integral piece of his farm, the farm will fail.”
The turkeys killed in the fire were between a $40,000 to $50,000 value to Floyd, he said, while Cargill “already had $100,000 in the birds when they died.”
“I’m a contract grower and those were Cargill’s birds,” he said. “Every one of those birds belonged to Cargill. … Their loss is a lot higher. I’m counting my value as to what I would’ve gotten paid.”
Floyd, 37, said his property was purchased around 2000 by his father.
“When I joined the Army I bought it from my dad,” he said. “I took my enlistment bonus and all the money I had saved for a down payment. Half of my paycheck every single month for 10 years went to the farm so I would have it paid off by the time I got out.”
The turkey farm was a later investment, Floyd added.
“Buying the turkey farm next door was a fantastic financial decision until [the fire],” he said.
RALLYING TOGETHER Luke Martin lives in Maine but quickly put together the GoFund-Me that has raised $27,225 as of Monday, Feb. 19.
Floyd enlisted in the Army in 2006 and he and Martin served together with the 173rd Airborne Brigade in Vicenza, Italy, including two deployments in war zones in the Middle East, followed by four years with the 82nd Airborne Division, deploying to Afghanistan twice.
Many paratroopers who served with Floyd frequently stay in touch and have had reunions in the past at the Carroll County farm.
“We used my place for reunions,” Floyd said. “We had one in 2022 and one is scheduled this year. The guys come for Memorial Day weekend and we spend time kayaking, hiking and just visiting with each other.”
That closeness had led to veterans he served with from all over the country rallying to help Floyd.
“I’ve worked for this place since I was 13 years old and I spent the big portion of the first morning after the fire crying,” Floyd said. “But one of my buddies who I went to Afghanistan with called me and said he thought they could help get my money back to rebuild. … So, he started the GoFundMe and sent it around to all of my Army buddies.”
“It’s super encouraging. I’ve had guys who I haven’t talked to in 15 years hear about the fire and have called me. We were a very tight-knit group.”
Floyd said he does have cows, goats, sheep and rabbits on his farm and is brainstorming ways his property could be used to bring in extra income.
“I’ve been doing a lot of math to see if there’s any way I can keep the 120 acres that I started with,” he said. “I’m talking everything from putting up cabins to a little wedding venue, turning my turkey houses into greenhouses and growing plants … “The $250,000 from insurance will cover this year and next year’s mortgage and part of the year after that, I think. I’ve got a little time to try to put something together for a cash flow.”
In the meantime, Floyd said he is relying on his faith and the overwhelming support from friends and family.
“Between the support and quoting Bible verses, I feel like I’ve been pretty upbeat,” he said. “Every now and then I let it get to me because I look down at that barn and say everything I’ve worked for since I was 13 is gone.
“But then I start quoting Bible verses and think about all the guys who are thinking about me. That and my faith are the only things that have kept me from breaking down when everything seems completely hopeless.”
The GoFundMe account set up to assist Floyd can be found by searching “Brians Farms” at gofundme. com.
