LARKSPUR, Colo. (KDVR) — A well-known barn, just off of Interstate 25 in Larkspur, was destroyed by a fire caused by lightning early Thursday morning.

Eric Usher and his family live on the Greenlands Ranch property that houses the big red barn. They were awakened by the crack of lightning around 3:30 Thursday morning, but little did they know, the damage that lightning would leave behind.

“I stayed awake and about an hour, hour and a half after my son came out and asked if I had seen that the barn was on fire and then we proceeded to go out and check everything out and go across the street and let the neighbor know about his horses,” Usher said.

The horses were luckily in the field surrounding the barn, so no animals were inside the barn. Usher said the Larkspur Fire Department arrived within 10 minutes, but the flames were already throughout the entirety of the barn.

Eventually, they were able to get the fire under control, but not before their beloved barn was in ruins. They’ve lived here for nearly two decades, building memories alongside the beloved red barn. Usher said residents in the area always take family photos and prom photos there.

“It’s definitely sad, this barn has been around a lot longer than I have, but to kind of have it be a backdrop in your life for a long time and then to lose it it’s hard to see it go,” Usher said.

Their small community is rallying behind them though, to make sure they’re okay and to share the love they all had for the barn.

“Plenty of people stopped by to just check on us to make sure everybody and everything is okay. It’s been nice it’s definitely not densely populated out here, so the few people that are here you know made their presence known and check in on us,” Usher said.