MILFORD — A fire broke out at the Our House in Milford Retreat Center, completely consuming the structure.

Emergency crews were alerted to the fire, located 1000 block of Cosby Road, at about 9:30 a.m. Monday. The cause of the fire has not been determined at this time and is under investigation by the Ellis County Fire Marshal Tim Birdwell.

“It is with great sadness that we inform you that Our House In Milford burned down this morning. The fireman believed that the roof was struck with lightning, which started the fire on the roof. We thank God that no one was there,” stated a post on the Our House in Milford Facebook page. “Please keep us in your prayers as we go through this trying time. We cherish the friendships we made these past eight and half years. You are our extended family - and we treasure you.”

As storms rolled through Monday morning, and more than 5,000 lightning strikes were reported across North Texas between 4 and 5 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

According to the Our House in Milford’s website, the facility is a 6,500 square foot, 33- person multi-purpose retreat center. The Waxahachie Daily Light was still waiting for a response from center representatives at press time.

When firefighters arrived on scene, the structure was fully involved in flames, said Don Chambers Italy Volunteer Fire Chief. Crews did not make entry into the structure, but fought the fire defensively from the outside. The structure was unoccupied at the time of the fire.

“It was a total loss. There were three departments, 20 guys and about six to eight trucks there for most morning,” Chambers said. “We had 3 inches of rain down here yesterday and in some places more than that. The grass was all wet, so we didn’t have to worry about it spreading anywhere else.”

Chambers said one of the first steps firefighters took was to set up a water supply using water tanker trucks. The closest fire hydrant was a little more than a mile away from the scene. No injuries were reported.

Members of the Milford, Italy and Forreston volunteer fire departments responded to the call. Members of the American Red Cross also responded to the scene to provide rehab services to firefighters.

Units cleared the scene at around 4 p.m.

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