Reward offered as hay stack burnings cause £25k damages

Over 1,000 bales of straw were destroyed in an arson attack
Over 1,000 bales of straw were destroyed in an arson attack

Cambridgeshire police are appealing for information after a hay stack worth £25,000 was destroyed by fire.

Over 1,000 bales of straw were destroyed in an arson attack at a farm in Sutton Road, Haddenham.

Inspector Dick Turner said: "This arson attack led to the loss of a large amount of straw with a very high value and we are keen to catch those involved.

"Crops and produce are a vital part of farming and we take the destruction of these items very seriously."

The victim is offering a reward of £1,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the offender.

Vigilant

On Thursday, 1,000 tonnes of hay were involved in a fire which cost the farmer £100,000 and closed the Oxton Bypass for most of the day.

A spokesman for the Fire Service said: "No intelligence has come about to say that we think there are suspicious circumstances around the fire, although we are advising farmers to be vigilant for any suspicious behaviour.

"We'd also suggest that any farmers with big stacks of hay separate them.

However, there are a variety of things that could have caused the fire and at the moment they are all being treated as a coincidence.

"It could be something as simple as someone walking by and discarding a cigarette, while sometimes when the dry grass is tightly packed together, the hay can spontaneously combust.

"We really don't know at the moment but we are advising farmers to stay vigilant."