Fire crews from Oconto, Callaway and Broken Bow responded to a call of hay bales on fire a few miles north of Pressey State Wildlife Management Area. At about 11 a.m., both the landowners and a neighbor saw smoke coming from a hay bale pile.
Landowner Yvette Mannon said there were about 200* bales of hay in the stack that was burning. The hay had been chopped and baled about 45 days ago.
Oconto Fire Chief Cliff Badgley said the bales would be spread out and allowed to burn, adding that if water was used, the fire would be capped and the bales would smoulder for days. Land owner Troy Mannon and neighbor Jake Guthard were using tractors to spread the burning hay with stops for water sprays to cool down the tractors.
Badgley said the cause was spontaneous combustion.
Strong gusty winds out of the south were blowing thick smoke over an irrigated corn field just north of the fire.
* This article has been edited to reflect a more accurate number of bales as 200, not the 100 initially thought. (9:20 p.m.)
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