Finley’s Rural Fire Service was called to the Finley property about 1.30pm.
The landholders had already started moving and breaking apart burning hay bales to limit the intensity and the spread.
This helped save another 150 bales in the vicinity from being burned.
Finley RFS Captain Andrew Taylor said emergency services took about two hours to extinguish the blaze completely.
He said the damage caused by the fire was minimal, with only patches of grass and bales burning.
Capt Taylor said the fire is a timely reminder to take preventative measures to reduce the risk of haystack fires, such as monitoring the temperature and moisture levels of the hay bales.
“It is important to be checking your hay bales, especially in the current weather conditions."
The Mid Murray Rural Fire Service has also issued a warning about the potential for an increase in haystack fires.
“With the unseasonally wet weather we are currently experiencing, there has been an increase in haystack fires,” a Mid Murray Zone issues via its social media pages.
“This is due to uncovered stacks out in the open having rain seep into them, which leads to spontaneous combustion.
“If you have stacks remaining in the paddock, please test the temperature of them, and pull them apart if they’re too hot.”
More information about how to prevent hay fires can be obtained from your local brigade, or by going to https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/plan-and-prepare/farm-fire-safety/haystack-fires.
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