Crews battling 30-acre wildfire in northeast Minnesota
Aerial photos show a 30-acre wildfire in the BWCAW on June 14, 2023. (USDA Forest Service photos by M. Crook)
(KSTP) – Officials with the U.S. Forest Service say they’re working to develop a plan to put out a 30-acre wildfire that’s burning in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) in northeast Minnesota.
Wednesday morning, the U.S. Forest Service said crews detected the fire between Spice Lake and Ogishkemuncie Lake on the Gunflint Ranger District of the Superior National Forest on Tuesday afternoon.
According to the Forest Service, the fire’s size is currently 30 acres, and fire personnel have been patrolling the surrounding areas to redirect members of the public to safety.
Crews are planning to fly over the fire Wednesday and then create a fire suppression plan.
Tuesday, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced burn restrictions for northeastern Minnesota, including the area where the wildfire is now burning.
In issuing that notice, the DNR cited the unusually dry conditions and said, “One unintentional spark in these conditions could result in thousands of charred acres and property damage.”
It isn’t immediately clear what might’ve caused the wildfire.
The BWCAW is over a 1 million-acre wilderness area within the Superior National Forest in the northeastern part Minnesota under the administration of the U.S. Forest Service.