Hay fire burns east of Modesto

About 700 tons of hay fueled by 20-mph winds burned at a dairy east of Modesto on Monday.

The fire broke out at Postma Dairy on Claus Road and Santa Fe Avenue at about 10:45 a.m.

Firefighters from Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Protection District, with the assistance of the Modesto Fire Department and Salida Fire Protection District, worked to contain the fire.

Stanislaus Consolidated Fire Battalion Chief Rick Bussell said, in general, hay fires are too large to extinguish so firefighters work to keep them from spreading, in this case to nearby vehicles and farm equipment.

“We allow the product to be consumed due to the inability to get enough water to the core of the stack,” he said.

Firefighters were expected to be on the scene for hours keeping the blaze under control. The hay will likely continue to smolder for days, fire officials said.

The cause of the fire has not been determined.

This story was originally published February 1, 2016 at 1:55 PM with the headline "Hay fire burns east of Modesto."