Firefighters put out tractor fire in Riley County

RILEY COUNTY., Kan. (WIBW) - Volunteer fire crews in Riley County were dispatched to reports of a vehicle fire on Tuesday afternoon.

According to officials, Riley County Fire District #1 responded to a call near Fairview Church Road and Walnut Creek Road near Leonardville in northern Riley County. Upon their arrival, fire crews found a John Deere silage chopper tractor fully engulfed in flames.

The seven volunteer firefighters were able to extinguish the fire in one hour and keep it from spreading to fields. There were no injuries reported, and the total damage estimate is not currently available, although officials say the tractor was a total loss.

“Losing a piece of equipment like this is a major setback for a farm. It’s always sad to see this kind of destruction, but we’re grateful no one was hurt.” said Russel Stukey, Emergency Services Director and Fire Chief. Stukey also mentioned that it is not unusual to see these instances occur. “It’s not unusual to have a piece of farm machinery catch on fire especially something that’s working with dry air materials such as corn stalks and stubble and leaves or hay bailers or combines that are harvesting crops,” said Stukey.

Riley County Fire District #1 is the largest volunteer fire department in the state with 120 volunteers and 15 fire stations throughout the county.

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