Horse hospital, home destroyed in overnight fire near Wake-Chatham county line

NEW HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- Fernando Cardenas had a home and business close to the Wake-Chatham county line, but an overnight fire gutted them both.

Firefighters spent hours under the moonlight early Monday morning dousing hot spots that kept flaring up at 3H Equine Hospital and Mobile Veterinary Services in New Hill.

"We're very lucky," Cardenas said. "I think we were very lucky that I was able to just hear the crackling noise right outside my window, and then be able to wake my wife up to call 911. And then just run down and start taking horses out as fast as we could."

No horse were injured in the fire. However, Cardenas did say his dog died in the fire and his family's cats remain missing. Still, he's grateful for the swift action of the first responders.

"Our focus now is just to get back in operation, to continue to serve our clients. We're going to probably rent a construction trailer so that we can answer the phones and stock inventory, so that we can continue to not let our clients down."

He's been at that location since 2004, working with the equine community.

Fire investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire, but Cardenas guesses it was probably electrical.

"Horse barns, you know, have so much dust and I suspect it was an electrical outlet. We don't keep any hay in the barns, so it was probably strictly an electrical fire."

He plans to rebuild when he can, and will continue operations at a nearby location.