Thousands of chickens were killed after a fire broke out at a Lebanon County farm this week.
Now animal rights group PETA is blaming their deaths on those who don’t follow a vegan lifestyle.
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PennLive reports that how the hen barn at Kreider Farms in South Annville Township caught fire on Tuesday afternoon, resulting in the deaths of about 250,000 chickens. No human injuries have been reported.
A post published to the Annville Cleona Fire Department Facebook page later explained how the area in which the barn was located lacked fire hydrants, requiring over 50 fire trucks from Lebanon and Northern Lancaster counties to put out the flames. According to fire officials, the incident caused roughly $12 million in damages.
PETA on Friday released a statement of its intent “to place a sky-high memorial” in honor of the chickens who died as a means of “pointing out who’s responsible for their deaths: everyone who still buys eggs.”
“Each one of these hens was an individual who surely felt pain and fear as smoke and flames engulfed her,” said PETA Exective Vice President Tracy Reiman. “PETA urges everyone to help prevent birds from being crammed into barns by the tens of thousands in the first place by taking the easy step of going vegan.”
Accompanying the statement was the image of hen that included the words “If everyone were vegan, it wouldn’t have happened.”
The Pennsylvania State Police’s fire marshal continues to investigate the cause of the blaze as of the writing of this report.
