Suffolk: Fire destroys combine harvester
12th August 2025
Four fire engines attended the blaze, which saw a combine harvester catch fire in a Suffolk field.
Suffolk Fire Service was called out to a farmer’s field near Ipswich after a combine harvester caught fire at 10.30pm on Saturday (9th August).
Four fire engines, from Woodbridge, Princes Street, Holbrook and Ipswich East, attended the field off Holly Lane in Rushmere St Andrew, near Ipswich.
Firefighters from Woodbridge Fire Station said in a first impressions message that a large plume of smoke and flames could be seen in the distance as they approached the field.
On arrival the Woodbridge crew deployed a 45mm hose to deliver water onto the fire.
The next oncoming appliance committed two breathing apparatus wearers into the risk area to continue extinguishing.
The farmers utilised their own water bowser to flood the area around the combine harvester to prevent further fire spread.
Additional appliances provided a water shuttle from a nearby hydrant to the incident ground.
Straw stack fire
The incident follows another fire involving 200 tonnes of straw on Thursday evening, which saw engines from Woodbridge, Saxmundham, Framlingham, Ipswich East and Leiston attend.
Crews maintained a watching brief and dampened down the surrounding area to prevent fire spread.
Relief crews were requested to swap out appliances that had been at the incident overnight and continued to monitor the fire into Sunday morning.
Call for action on farmland fires
The NFU recently called for government, fire services and local authorities to work with farmers to reduce the risk of farmland fires.
It’s calling for legislation to ensure combine harvesters are equipped with fire suppression mechanisms at the point of sale, plus public space protection orders on activities that risk wildfires, such as lighting barbeques and setting off sky lanterns.
The union urged the government to avoid changes in land management policies – particularly in the uplands – which could increase wildfire risk in dry conditions.
All fire services should also invest in a newly developed adapter to enable fire engines to access on-farm water bowsers and tanks.
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