A hot baler sparked a fire in the field of a Fayette farmer, eventually burning more than 150 acres of pasture. Brian Kunze of the Howard County Fire District says they got the call about 2:30pm Wednesday. The blaze was on the Johnmeyer farm off County Rd. 105 and Highway 124, between Harrisburg and Fayette.

Kunze says 50 firefighters from seven departments worked the blaze for six hours. Winds hurt their efforts. While no structures were damaged, the fire did burn hay in the field and bales. It is critical feed for livestock in the extreme drought.

Kunze says they have responded to a dozen calls for grass fires in the past nine day but this was by far the largest.