Minnesota county declares emergency as wildfire smoke triggers air quality alert

Smoke from wildfires in northern Minnesota and Canada put northeast Minnesota under an air quality alert Tuesday, with fine particles expected to reach the purple category, the level considered very unhealthy for everyone. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency said the alert took effect at 7 a.m. Tuesday, July 14, and was set to run until 11 a.m. Thursday, July 16, covering Two Harbors, Hibbing, Ely and the Tribal Nation of Grand Portage.

A northern Minnesota county declared a state of emergency and St. Louis County’s sheriff’s office activated the Ready, Set, Go evacuation process because of wildfire conditions. Heavy smoke from large fires in northeast Minnesota and Canada could drift farther south as temperatures climbed into the 90s, cutting visibility and making outdoor activity unsafe, especially for children, older adults and people with lung or heart conditions.

Gov. Tim Walz said Minnesota should brace for a long wildfire season as dry, windy and hot weather combined with dead trees and blowdown debris to drive dangerous fire behavior across the region. Walz said the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness remained closed until at least Friday morning, the Minnesota National Guard had been deployed to assist with evacuation and fire mitigation efforts, and at least 17 people had been rescued from the BWCA without injuries so far.

The Camp Fire northeast of Ely spread more than 4 miles in a half-day under extremely hot and dry conditions, and St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay said the fire reached 1,500 acres in a single day as fallen trees from previous blowdowns helped fuel explosive growth. More than a dozen fires were burning in and near the BWCA, adding pressure to local crews and the state response system.

The State Emergency Operations Center in Blaine was preparing wildfire briefings as the Minnesota Department of Public Safety tracked conditions across northern Minnesota. A fire in Canada also raised concern near the end of the Gunflint Trail, where smoke and flames could cross the border. Minnesota had already declared a peacetime emergency for wildfire response on May 17, mobilizing state resources as heat, wind and dry forests continued to drive fire risk across the north.