NIMO Rules Out Ely Evacuation as 15 Superior National Forest Fires Burn
Updated
Updated · The Ely Echo · Jul 16
NIMO Rules Out Ely Evacuation as 15 Superior National Forest Fires Burn
1 articles · Updated · The Ely Echo · Jul 16
Summary
Chris Barth told Ely officials there has been no discussion of evacuating the city, despite community concern over the fast-moving wildfire complex.
Large areas on the St. Louis County evacuation map turned to “GO” only to reflect the Boundary Waters closure, Barth said, while crews develop trigger points for any future evacuation decisions.
Beginning Friday, the Wolfpack, Camp, Thumb, Bear Trap and Sioux fires will be managed as branches of the Bear Trap Fire complex after some fires, including Wolfpack and Sioux, merged in places.
The Forest Service listed 15 active fires across Superior National Forest, including Bear Trap at 13,500 acres, Thumb at 14,129 and Little Knife at 30,000 acres, with extreme fire behavior reported on Bear Trap.
A Southern Area complex team is due to take command Saturday as southwest winds and weekend heat in the 80s threaten to drive further fire growth.