With hay season beginning in the west and north-west parts of the state, farmers are being urged to take extra care in preventing haystack fires.
Between 30 June, 2024, and 1 July, 2025, CFA responded to 73 haystack and hay shed fires in regional areas, with 53 per cent occurring in the west and northwest of the state.
Haystack fires are often caused by spontaneous combustion when hay is baled with excess moisture. High moisture levels, combined with the compact nature of hay bales, can create internal heat, leading to ignition.
Buloke West group officer and farmer David Manifold said there are many factors which can lead to a haystack fire.
“What goes wrong is essentially hay is baled at a high moisture or what we have learned in recent times is leaving the hay out for longer to dry can actually increase the growth of yeast and moulds on the hay,” he said.
“The yeast and mould levels can get so high that any ingression of water is as good as throwing a match on it.”
Mr Manifold said he uses a variety of technologies to reduce the risk.
“We are using new techniques on the machinery side to get our window shorter for bailing in sub seven days which is the key to keeping the yeasts and moulds lower,” he said.
He said he also has a temperature probe that sends temperature data to a central bay station on the farm, which alerts him if it reaches 40 and 50 degrees.
CFA chief officer Jason Heffernan reinforced that early preparation and proper storage are essential in reducing the risk of haystack fires.
“With a large number of haystack fires in the past financial year, the impact on farmers and their livelihoods is clear,” he said.
“Haystack fires can have far-reaching effects beyond individual properties, impacting neighbouring farms and emergency services.
“Make sure you store your hay in separate stacks or in sheds away from farm equipment and other buildings to prevent the spread of fire.”
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