Sheldon, Iowa — About two hundred round bales were destroyed by fire late Saturday afternoon at a rural Sheldon farm.
According to Sheldon Assistant Fire Chief Brad Hindt, firefighters were paged out to 3342 Lily Avenue, about three miles southwest of Northwest Iowa Community College, shortly before 4:30 Saturday afternoon to the report of hay bales on fire.
On arrival, Hindt says firefighters found a stack of about 200 round bales and a large burn pit on fire. Firefighters attacked the large burn pit and the stack of bales to control the embers from spreading to other areas on the farm place. Tanker trucks from Boyden, Hospers, and Matlock were requested for water to help fight the blaze.
Hindt says once a water supply was set up, the farmer got equipment ready and a neighbor came over with a tractor and disc, then the hay bales were removed from the stack and brought out into an open field, broken apart and then dismantled, while firefighters controlled the bales and embers until the pile was total removed.
About 35 firefighters were on scene, for about three-and-one-half hours.
Hindt says the nearby burn pit was responsible for igniting the bales. Officials estimate the damage at about $5,000.
Sheldon Fire was assisted on scene by the Boyden, Hospers and Matlock Fire Departments, Sioux County Sheriff’s Office and Scott Schmidt with a tractor and disc.
Sheldon Fire was back in service at 7:30 Saturday evening.
Photos courtesy of the Sheldon Fire Company
