A bumper wheat harvest for one Corowa farmer has taken a hit after a fire was started by a truck's trailer losing its wheel.
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Eighty firefighters responded to the fire on Tuesday, ignited at the corner of the Riverina Highway and Balldale Road in Hopefield.
It spread to a property owned since 2012 by Ian Trevethan, who farms wheat and canola there.
While the blaze burnt 80 hectares of wheat crop, 50 of those hectares had already been harvested.
"I wasn't there when it started - we were harvesting on a property north of Howlong - but my brother wasn't far away," Mr Trevethan said.
"He got there and there were plenty of trucks, but we couldn't get on the paddock because it was too wet.
"We had to let it burn to the other side, which was a bit frustrating.
"I can understand the call as there were some trucks that got bogged."
NSW Police have called for information about a truck seen on the highway towing a large mobile woodchipper, with NSW registration plates TE95JN.
A police spokesperson said officers were investigating and wanted any dashcam footage people might have.
"One of the wheels was damaged due to a mechanical failure," they said.
"It is believed the sparks subsequently ignited fires on the side of the road, that spread to nearby properties.
"Police were also told that three unknown men were seen exiting the truck towing the chipper, before disconnecting the trailer and leaving the scene."
Mr Trevethan said the driver was possibly unaware of the damage.
"It's one of those things, a wheel bearing can go at any time," he said.
"I've had a chat to our insurance company and they've said we'll be covered for what we've got insured.
"We won't be covered for any uninsured loss because it's an accident, there's no negligence as such - that was the insurer's take.
"I guess by finding the owner, police just want to tie up any loose ends."
In taking an optimistic view, Mr Trevethan said the burnt paddock being under-insured was a welcomed consequence of the season's strength.
"Most people are really happy with their yields," he said.
"It's been a frustrating harvest, though, with the weather - there's been a lot of stop-starting and downgrading of wheat.
"But the prices generally are really good.
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"A few people around us will be finished before Christmas ... but there will be plenty harvests going into the new year.
"We won't quite be finished, although, we've got one less paddock to harvest.
"There's a silver lining to every cloud."
