Farmer Stanley Saylor definitely wanted his old hog barn to come down. Just not quite so fast.

Smoking ruins were all that remained of the wooden structure after a two-alarm fire burned it to its concrete-block foundations Wednesday afternoon. According to fire officials, Saylor had been tearing down the barn piece by piece at his East Donegal Township farmstead and was burning the debris when the wind shifted and flames leapt to the building itself.

A second, unrelated fire Wednesday afternoon claimed a one-car garage in Ephrata, officials said.

The roof of Saylor's barn was collapsing and the whole structure was aflame when firefighters arrived about 2:15 p.m. at 1635 Haunstein Road, Lt. Jason Barclay of Maytown-East Donegal Fire Company said.

Firefighters' main concern was to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to nearby trees, fencing or buildings, Barclay said. They were successful, and the blaze was declared under control in about 45 minutes, Maytown Chief Jason Trostle said.

There was no water source at the property, so a second alarm was called, in part to ensure enough tankers would be available, Trostle said.

Saylor had cleared out the old barn before starting to tear it down, so no equipment or goods were lost. He said he built the barn himself more than 30 years ago.

The fire was ruled accidental, Trostle said. Companies dispatched included Bainbridge, Columbia, Elizabethtown, Marietta, Mountville, Mount Joy, Rheems and West Hempfield and Hellam and Wrightsville from York County.

Firefighters were still dousing hot spots at the East Donegal farm when a garage fire erupted behind a house in Ephrata.

The 2:50 p.m. fire destroyed a shed-style garage at 30 Robert Road, Lincoln Fire Company Chief Adrian Borry said.

The heat and flames damaged the roof and cracked the windows of an adjoining concrete-block garage on the property, Borry said.

The blaze was put out within seven minutes of firefighters' arrival, Borry said.

The fire was electrical and may have been due to a fault in a riding lawnmower kept in the garage, Borry said.

Owner Ruth Sensenig said she also lost an air compressor and a couple of air conditioners that she stored there.

Sensenig was not at home when the fire broke out, and it was called in by a neighbor, the chief said.

He estimated damage at $20,000 for the smaller garage and its contents, plus $5,000 damage to the larger garage.

Sensenig said she has insurance.

Pioneer Fire Company and Ephrata Ambulance also responded.

E-mail: tstuhldreher@lnpnews.com