Hartley, Iowa — A combine was destroyed in a fire on Thursday, October 5, 2023, near Hartley.
According to Hartley Assistant Fire Chief Larry Espey, at about 2:00 p.m., the Hartley Fire Department was called to the report of a combine fire near 2888 Wilson Avenue, two miles east and about three north of Hartley.
The chief says the fire department saw the combine on fire as they approached the scene. He says the combine had started burning in the rear, and with the dust and chaff that were present, it engulfed the combine quickly and started the bean stubble on fire. But, he says, they were able to contin the fire to the area already combined.
Assistant Chief Espey says no injuries were reported. He says he thinks the fire started in the combustible dust around the exhaust pipe.
Espey reports that the combine was totaled but there was no crop damage.
He says the firefighters who responded were on the scene for about an hour and 15 minutes.
