Evacuation order lifted for 1 of 3 wildfires in northern Minnesota
The evacuation order was lifted for areas around the 1,600-acre Munger Shaw Fire, with the news confirmed on Thursday evening by St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsey.
"It was lifted earlier this evening due to the more favorable weather conditions and successful work on preventing further spread, residents have been allowed to return to their properties beginning earlier tonight," Ramsey said.
The fire is now considered 25% contained, according to a Friday update from the Minnesota Incident Command System.
"I'm happy to report the Munger Shaw Fire was much better than it was the last few nights, and hopefully with the rain we received this evening we can take that one off the list," he added.
"Residents will be able to come and go as they need."
The storms that passed through northern Minnesota on Thursday evening dropped around three-quarters of an inch of rain in parts of the Iron Range, bringing much-needed relief to the dry conditions that helped fuel the fire.
But the winds that preceded it caused significant concern for responders particularly those fighting the 15,000-acre Jenkins Creek Fire, which Ramsey said "did continue to expand" on Thursday.
This expansion prompted changes to the evacuation zones, moving the City of Hoyt Lakes into the second-highest alert – "SET" – which recommends residents be prepared to evacuate if needed.
"We had some worries this afternoon when that wind really picked up," Ramsey said. "The heavy wind was gusting to the 30s as the storm moved in, and we we heard there was a gust of 74mph in Hovland.
"We were really concerned about that fire and what was happening with it, however the rain came and diminished the worries significantly for tonight (Thursday)."
While evacuation zones are still in effect for the Jenkins Creek and Camp House fires, authorities said residents would be allowed to return to their homes temporarily during the day on Friday provided they check in with officials at Hugo's Bar in Brimson.
They must be out of the homes by 8 p.m.
BMTN Note: Weather events in isolation can't always be pinned on climate change, but the broader trend of increasingly severe weather and record-breaking extremes seen in Minnesota and across the globe can be attributed directly to the rapidly warming climate caused by human activity. The IPCC has warned that Earth is "firmly on track toward an unlivable world," and says greenhouse gas emissions must be halved by 2030 in order to limit warming to 1.5C, which would prevent the most catastrophic effects on humankind. You can read more here.
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