Owners of Smiths Falls’ Northern Lights Equine need help sheltering animals after property destroyed by fire

Francis Audet and his partner Debbie Baldwin are picking up the pieces of their business and lives while doing their best to find homes for high-needs horses after a massive fire at Smiths Falls' Northern Lights Equine.

According to a GoFundMe page for the pair, a fire starting inside the walls of a home above a barn and spread quickly throughout the entire establishment on Thursday, September 23.

Firefighters worked throughout the day to extinguish the flames only to have it reignite later, which led to the fire department tearing down part of the building to get to the root of the blaze. 

All of the horses made it out safely, but Audet and Baldwin's daughters' beloved pets and flock of chickens were not able to be saved.

One major challenge is finding a place to house two blind horses that live on the property. The GoFundMe explains that the animals must have shelter at night for safety reasons. 

The family is living in a small trailer just off the property with little in the way of essentials.

Northern Lights Equine has been part of the Smiths Falls community for appropriately 60 years.