CONGER — A machine shed received minor damage and a small area of grass burned Tuesday afternoon from a fire east of Conger.

Resident Bob Maxwell, who owns the property with his wife, Connie, at 17478 720th Ave., said he was burning household garbage near the machine shed earlier that afternoon, when he left the garbage smoldering to run into Albert Lea.

When he returned home, he said he saw flames “as high as the trees.” The garbage somehow started some nearby cardboard on fire, along with some old tires.

He said he burns household garbage every few days. He has lived on the property since the late 1930s.

The Conger Fire Department and Freeborn County Sheriff’s Office responded.