A storage barn burned early Thursday west of Billings, and by noon owner Levi Britton was salvaging a few remaining items and recalling what he lost.

"This whole front end was an international trophy collection," Britton said. "Two hundred animals from 30 countries. You can't go after polar bears anymore. Can't go back to Russia anymore. Once-in-a-lifetime sheep tags. There was everything from elephants to native stuff."

Britton's gray and green metal barn, located at 600 Kudu Ave. in the King Avenue Estates subdivision, caught fire around 2:30 a.m. Several neighbors called to report the fire, and firefighters from Laurel fought the blaze with the help of Billings firefighters.

The cause of the blaze is undetermined, said Yellowstone County Sheriff's Detective Seth Weston. The Sheriff's Office is handling the investigation because damages are expected to exceed $1 million, Weston said. If the Sheriff's Office determines that no crime was involved, its investigation will end, Weston said. Insurance representatives were coming to survey the damage, he said.

Laurel Fire Chief Derek Yeager said a call was received at 2:39 a.m., after nearby residents were awakened by loud explosions.

"A strong west wind really helped fuel the blaze," Yeager said. "It was throwing debris of 6- to 7-inch pieces of wood downwind."

More than 17,000 gallons of water was dumped on the fire by about 22 firefighters, Yeager said.

The barn was divided into two sections. The back section was a shop and held a motor home, tractors and other equipment. All that was left of that section was a pile of twisted and mangled metal. The metal structure of the front section was still standing, but the inside was charred and soaking wet. From his former trophy room, Britton carried out a few gun and bow cases and some boxes dripping water. The only thing that survived intact was a concrete safe containing paperwork and other items.

"The other stuff is iron," Britton said of the shop area. "This end hurts."