Wildfires in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness have consumed over 69,000 acres, making this the second-largest fire event in Minnesota in the last 20 years.

Fire Status

The quickly growing fires and ongoing dry conditions forced a closure of the entire BWCAW for a time, with evacuation zones in and around the Boundary Waters and near towns like Ely being put into effect. However, in the later parts of July, the footprint of those evacuation zones has been reduced, and parts of the Boundary Waters were reopened as of July 30, showing signs of progress against these fires.

Hard work from crews and more favorable weather conditions have reduced the aggressive spread of these fires and have allowed teams to establish partial containment. Between the 7 largest fires and several smaller ones in this summer’s BWCAW wildfire outbreak, a total of more than 69,000 acres have been consumed inside Minnesota.

Original reporting: News Talk 1340 KROC-AM – News and Talk – Rochester News Radio — read the source article.