Three fires in North Otago in about 10 days have prompted a warning to farmers to check tractors and machinery before starting them for birds' nests or other combustible material.
Last week, Waitaki Rural Fire was called to a tractor fire on Devils Bridge Rd, Ardgowan, caused by a bird's nest.
Principal rural fire officer Steve Couper said there had been two similar fires in farm machinery, at Round Hill and Hilderthorpe, this month and in all three cases there was significant damage.
"It's spring, and birds are building nests, so farmers should check mechanised machinery before starting it up, for them, straw or any other material," he said.
Checks for nests should be done at least daily at this time of year.
"I had one farmer who told me he parked his tractor for lunch and, when he came back about an hour later, it had a nest with an egg in it," Mr Couper said.
The farmer involved in last week's fire had just started the tractor in its shed and turned away to talk to a neighbour.
He could smell smoke and turned around to find the tractor on fire. They managed to push it out of the shed before the building caught fire.
The tractor was destroyed, but it could have been worse if the shed had caught fire, Mr Couper said.
