JANESVILLE, Wis (WSAU) Authorities say an electrical problem or a ceiling heater might have caused a barn fire that killed two dozen horses in the Janesville area. It happened on Wednesday in Footville, where Jim and Cindy Bondowski rescue and rehabilitate horses. The couple managed to save five animals, but they couldn’t save more because

they were driven back by the heavy smoke-and-flames. Cindy Bondowski says all their equipment is gone – and she said the loss of the horses was especially heart-breaking. The couple has run a rescue operation for 15 years called “HORSE,” the Humane Organization Rescuing and Saving Equine. It cares for injured and sick horses, as well as those abandoned by people who cannot afford to keep them.

The place had 49 horses when the fire hit. 25 survived, including those rescued from the barn involved in the fire. Donations are being taken to help the HORSE operation. They can be sent to the M-and-I Bank in Janesville.