BLOOMING PRAIRIE, Minn. – A fire at a mega-hog operation killed 2,000 animals. Typical of secretive factory of hog-raising operations, no one in charge wanted to respond to reporter questions, but there was no denying the smoke that could be seen for five miles. Blooming Prairie Fire Chief Dean Naatz said a worker at one end of the main building saw flames on the other end and called firefighters about 8 a.m. By 9:30 a.m., the fire was still burning. No tenders were injured. Firefighters responded from Blooming Prairie, Claremont and Hayfield.
