St. Louis County Sheriff Shares Some Good News On Northland Wildfires

About a week after unseasonably hot and dry weather created conditions that helped three wildfires grow to consume thousands of acres in Northern Minnesota, a piece of good news is coming out from the St. Louis County Sheriff.

Monday evening (May 19), St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay provided a pair of updates that are a move in a positive direction, removing some of the closures and evacuation orders that were put in place due to the fires.

While there are still several road closures and evacuation orders in place, Sheriff Ramsay shared which evacuation orders and road closures are now rolled back in a pair of social media posts.

What fire evacuation orders are lifted?

The first of Sheriff Ramsay's announcements explained that all evacuation zones related to the Munger Shaw fire have been cleared.

As of today, this fire is 95% contained after consuming 1,259 acres since being discovered on May 12. Estimates for the size of this fire had gotten as high as more than 1.600 acres, but have since been scaled back, which has happened with the other two Northland fires as well.

READ MORE: How to donate money or supplies to Northland wildfire victims

While the Munger Shaw fire evacuation zones have been cleared, the same cannot be said about the areas around the Jenkins Creek and Camp House fires, a little further north.

The map above indicates the current evacuation zones around these other two fires as of the end of the day on May 19.

Sheriff Ramsay did note that Evacuation Zone 6 had been downgraded to “Set” status as of Monday evening. He noted that "this is to allow ONLY property owners and residents of Zone 6 to return to their property full-time but maintain a “Set” status".

What road closures have been lifted?

Sheriff Ramsay's other announcement on Monday evening, he did highlight the change about Evacuation Zone 6 above, as well as that Brimson Road has now been reopened with some other notes.

His statement explained that "Brimson Road is open to through-traffic. The section of Hwy-44 south from Brimson Road is also open to through-traffic. Hwy-44 north from Brimson Rd. remains closed to Town Line Road."

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Sheriff Ramsay went on to ask the public to "Take extra care when driving due to the continued presence of emergency crews, utility crews, and other curious or distracted drivers. Everyone is reminded to be cautious of hazards, maintain a safe speed, and remember crews are still working in the area."

What is the status of the other two major fires in the Northland?

The Jenkins Creek Fire's scale has been downsized to 16,331 acres from earlier estimates of over 20,000 acres. As of the end of the day on May 19, the fire is 6% contained. Despite some rain, crews say moisture levels in some of the fire fuels are still low. Monday's windy conditions also added challenges to firefighters battling the blaze.

The Camp House Fire's size has been most recently reported at 12,177 acres. As of the end of the day on May 19, 40% of this fire has been contained. Similar to the Jenkins Creek Fire, some dry fuels in the area of the Camp House Fire and hotspots in places like stumps remain issues.