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Sep. 30, 2011 Des Moines Register reports: Farm fields in Clay, O'Brien, Palo Alto and Osceola counties burst into flame Thursday afternoon as winds that reached 60 m.p.h. fed fires sparked by combines harvesting corn and soybeans. Another farm field fire was reported late Thursday afternoon near Story City. At least two counties, Clay and O'Brien, put out requests to farmers to stop harvesting until the winds died down. "We had fire departments from Sheldon, Sandborn, Hartley, Sutherland, Calumet and Paullina all out fighting fires," said O'Brien County Sheriff Michael Anderson. Anderson said a number of farm combines were burned Thursday, but no injuries were reported. "Those combines run hot and dry leaves get up into the machinery and it can cause fires," said Anderson. In Palo Alto County, where farmer Neal Heldt lost a combine when it burst into flame. "I was harvesting soybeans and something sparked and the next thing I know flames were shooting up all around," said Heldt, who escaped uninjurerd. The ground has been dry over most of Iowa this summer after the state received only about half of its normal rainfall. The harvest season in recent years has been accompanied by wet rather than dry conditions, but this year is different. A large fire just north of Everly in Clay County Thursday prompted the Clay County Sheriff's office to ask farmers to temporarily halt harvesting. "All seven of our deputies are out working on the fire," said Kay Wilson of the Clay County Sheriff's office. Other fires were were reported near Sioux Rapids, Langdon, Emmetsburg, Fostoria and Hartley. Much of the eastern and northern parts of Iowa were put under a high wind advisory Thursday by the National Weather Service, which warned of winds in excess of 60 m.p.h. Tweet |
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