A combine is a total loss after catching fire in a wheat field.

According to the Saline County Sheriff’s Office, David Persigehl was operating a Case IH 2188 combine in a field in the 8800 block of S. Centennial Road on Monday evening when the machine caught on fire.

Persigehl told deputies he believed the U-joint sparked on the PTO shaft causing the blaze.

Rural Fire Department #2 responded to the scene. Loss is listed at $55,000.