(Red Oak, Iowa) – The Montgomery County Emergency Management Agency reports EMA personnel assisted multiple agencies from Mills, Page and Montgomery County Sunday afternoon south of Emerson, on a large field fire involving multiple pieces of farm equipment. EMA Director Brian Hamman said “As always, without the quick response of mutual aid agencies and additional farmers with tractors and discs, this fire could have been much worse.”

Hamman said also “We are in a very critical state in the entire area due to dry conditions that have plagued us for multiple months it seems. Until we see some adequate moisture, these conditions will persist. Please continue to be extremely cautious around any heat source, refrain from any open burns and be sure to check and recheck those previous burns multiple times, never discard smoking material out of your vehicles and ALWAYS call 9-1-1 immediately upon any type of fire.”

Sunday’s fire took over a half dozen fire agencies and over a dozen farmers with tractors and discs to contain. Agencies responding to the incident included: