Fire engulfs tractor, leads to brush fire near Harvard

A tractor engulfed in flames led to a large brush fire southwest of Harvard Thursday evening, a spokesman said.

The Harvard Fire Protection District was dispatched at 9:13 p.m. Thursday to the area of Bunker Hill Road and Island Road for a report of a farm machinery on fire in a field, district spokesman Alex Vucha said.

Firefighters found a large tractor on fire about 500 meters off the roadway in an agricultural field, Vucha said. Due to the location and limited access to the vehicle, several additional fire brush trucks were requested.

While battling the vehicle fire, firefighters also worked to extinguish a large brush fire, which had spread across the northern portion of the field. The brush fire was contained to less than 2 acres in size, Vucha said.

All of the fire was extinguished within 45 minutes.

The farmer was in the process of tilling the field when the fire began and was unharmed, Vucha said. The tractor, a Case IH Steiger 550 Quadtrac, was destroyed in the fire and the cost of the damaged is estimated to exceed $300,000.

The cause of the fire was undetermined as Friday morning.

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The Harvard Fire Protection District responded to a tractor and brush fire Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022, in the area of Bunker Hill Road and Island Road near Harvard. (Provided by Harvard Fire Protection District)