Fire


200-acre wildfire burning near Brimson, prompting evacuations
The sheriff's office said "a number of cabins, garages and other structures have been affected," but no injuries were reported as of late Sunday afternoon.
Fire truck

BRIMSON — A 200-acre wildfire near Brimson on Sunday prompted evacuations for "several dozen residents," the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office said.

The sheriff's office said a "rapidly spreading grass/wildfire" was reported at 1:15 p.m. at the 2200 block of Highway 44 in Ault Township.

87 degrees F. and 32MPH winds now.

“05.11.2025 – 4:00 p.m. – Firefighters and multiple aircraft are responding to the Camphouse wildfire located near Brimson, Minnesota. The fire was detected this afternoon shortly before 2:00 p.m.
“Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Superior National Forest firefighters are on site. The public is asked to avoid the area for their own safety and the safety of fire personnel. No drones allowed near the area.“

Flight tracking website Flightaware showed a pair of Canadair CL-415 SuperScoopers, which can fill up with water from nearby lakes and dump that water on and near wildfires, taking off from Ely Municipal Airport just after 2:30 p.m. Sunday. The planes circled the area of the fire until flying back to Ely just after 6 p.m. Several other smaller aircraft were also circling in the area.

That’s where a BWCA members cabin and land is. I hope it misses him!

Now 750 acres
command center

Relative humidity started low yesterday and fell off the table. Here’s the three-day history at Skibo, which is probably the nearest reporting station:

Skibo three-day history

gravelroad: "Relative humidity started low yesterday and fell off the table. Here’s the three-day history at Skibo, which is probably the nearest reporting station:


Skibo three-day history "

Something is amiss with the Skibo RAWS.
There cannot be a RH of 1 percent last night or the daytime in N MN, we are not the desert.

The Brief
A wildfire has burned an estimated 750 acres in northern Minnesota on Sunday.
The fire is burning near Brimson, Minn. in the Superior National Forest, about 35 miles north of Duluth.
Several dozen people have been evacuated amid the fire battle.

zone

Link

Fire update duluth news

BRIMSON — An estimated three cabins were destroyed and over 50 residences evacuated due to the Camp House Fire, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office reported Monday afternoon.

Camp House Fire.C02.jpg
Smoke rises from the Camp House Fire above the treeline near County Highway 44 on Monday.Wyatt Buckner / Duluth Media Group
The Camp House Fire grew from 200 acres Sunday evening to approximately 750 acres overnight. The cause of the fire is under investigation.



Several dozen residents were evacuated Sunday evening. Displaced residents should plan to remain evacuated Monday night, the sheriff's office said in the news release. The northern evacuation line is Little Creek Road, the eastern line is County Road 151; the southern line is Camp House Road; and the western line is County Highway 44.

Jeff Conklin, who lives on Elo Road, was on a side-by-side ride with friends Sunday when he started to hear about the fire. When he got closer to home, he found his was closed.But his dogs, Queeny, an 11-year-old Presa Canario, and Thor, a 10-year-old Presa Canario and lab mix, were back at the house.

He was allowed to quickly retrieve the dogs and get out, but said he would have gone in if they had tried to stop him

“They (Queen and Thor) are old,” Conklin said. “They don’t deserve to die of smoke inhalation.”

Conklin, who uses a wheelchair, spent the night in his vehicle parked outside Hugo’s Bar in Brimson, which is serving as a staging area for first responders and unofficial gathering place for evacuees.

Man looks at fire smoke
Jeff Conklin looks at the plume of smoke rising above the tree line from the Camp House Fire near Hugo's Bar in Brimson on Monday.Wyatt Buckner / Duluth Media Group
So far, he thinks the fire spared his home.

Greg Ruberg, of Two Harbors, who was sitting at the bar snacking on popcorn just before noon Monday, said he just got back from checking on his cabin near George Lake.


While the fire burned around the property, his cabin and four other structures were unharmed.

“We had a really large fire perimeter because of all the dead balsam, so we worked on it for the last year and half, cleaning up every dead tree, all the brush,” Ruberg said. “And it burned exactly around the perimeter of our yard.”

At least two of his neighbors, however, were among those who lost their cabins.

In addition to reducing fuels, Ruberg also credited the work of aerial crews dropping water on and around his property and first responders who went in and checked on his property and let him know it was safe.

“They were doing everything they could to save it,” Ruberg said.

Camp House Fire.C07.jpg
A Canadair CL-415 SuperScooper refills its water tank on Cadotte Lake to battle the

I can see the smoke from these fires in Duluth.

Looks like there is now a second fire, near Hoyt Lakes
WDIO story on second fire

1250 acres now, National Guard called out.
Jumped highway #44.

1250

he National Guard will provide personnel, assistance and resources alongside the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Minnesota Interagency Fire Center and local agencies.

Low humidity and high winds caused a wildfire burning near Brimson to jump in size Monday. Meanwhile, a new, separate wildfire spread a few miles to the northeast.

The Camp House Fire, which ignited Sunday afternoon, grew to 1,250 acres by mid-morning Monday, up from 750 acres the evening before, Superior National Forest spokesperson Christine Kolinski said.

An estimated three cabins were destroyed and over 50 residences evacuated in the Camp House Fire, the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office reported Monday afternoon.

It also jumped highway #44 this afternoon.

I am worried with all the dead Balsams.
The two largest fires are heading NNE so will miss my property, but hopefully won't burn the Langley River/Kane Lake area where both my sister and I know friends.

Hot fire

Does anyone know how the Camphouse fire started?

OgimaaBines: "Does anyone know how the Camphouse fire started?"

Not official yet, but a St Louis county deputy stated that it is believed to be from a campfire.

LindenTree: "

OgimaaBines: "Does anyone know how the Camphouse fire started?"

Not official yet, but a St Louis county deputy stated that it is believed to be from a campfire.
"

Local chatter is two younger guys that had recently bought property on the corner there, were clearing land and brush and were burning the brush. There's pictures of them on FB, as people were concerned when they saw it. It got away from them and they were there an onsite when it happened.

Fire is currently 15,000 acres.

Unfortunate for all involved. We got the pre-evac notice yesterday afternoon. Current fire boundary is 6 miles from our place over at Marble. I don't think it gets over there, based on the wind, but it is expanding that direction.

Speckled: "We got the pre-evac notice yesterday afternoon. Current fire boundary is 6 miles from our place over at Marble. I don't think it gets over there, based on the wind, but it is expanding that direction."

I know a couple different landowners in that area. I had to remind family members about our friend on the Langley River.
I'm hoping for a wet and dreary stretch of weather.

Evacuation orders

Ely pilots

ELY — Blake Freking struggled to recall what day of the week it was Wednesday as he briefly paused to discuss the team effort mounted to slow the spread of the Camp Home and Jenkins Creek wildfires from the air.

Small wonder. As an aviation officer for the U.S. Forest Service, the past four days of battling a pair of fast-spreading fires from the Ely Air Attack Base have been a bit of a blur.



Firefighting plane lands
A CL215-T firefighting plane lands at the Ely Air Attack Base on Wednesday.Wyatt Buckner / Duluth Media Group
A couple De Havilland CL-215T scooper planes had just hit the tarmac Wednesday afternoon, and crews quickly went to work preparing the valuable aircraft for their next sorties on the flames.

Trees burning
RELATED: Evacuation ordered for Munger Shaw Fire
Sheriff Gordon Ramsay said the fires show no sign of slowing.
6h ago
2
The airplanes arrived by way of Bozeman, Montana, and would be joined Thursday by another duo from Spokane, Washington.

With more than 140 homes already lost to the forest fires and more than 35,000 acres of land already blackened, it may seem difficult to imagine anyone uncovering a silver lining amid the ashes.

Surprising Canada hasn’t sent some help yet

Mocha: "Surprising Canada hasn’t sent some help yet"

There has been Canadian water bombers from day one I think

Speckled: "

LindenTree: "

OgimaaBines: "Does anyone know how the Camphouse fire started?"

Not official yet, but a St Louis county deputy stated that it is believed to be from a campfire.
"

Local chatter is two younger guys that had recently bought property on the corner there, were clearing land and brush and were burning the brush. There's pictures of them on FB, as people were concerned when they saw it. It got away from them and they were there an onsite when it happened.




"

can you share a link to these pics on facebook?

Pinetree: "

Mocha: "Surprising Canada hasn’t sent some help yet"

There has been Canadian water bombers from day one I think"

Canadians have their own problems. There's major fires in eastern Manitoba around Lac du Bonnet. I think the entire Nopiming provincial park burned. This is the area south of Wallace lake.

On Wednesday morning, MNICS handed over management of the two largest fires to an Eastern Area Complex Incident Management Team, and Camp House Fire and Jenkins Creek fire were operationally redefined as the Brimson Complex Fire.
Gov. Tim Walz authorized the deployment of the Minnesota National Guard on Monday and spoke during a press conference Tuesday to urge residents to cooperate with evacuation orders.
“I know these are difficult decisions to make,” Walz said. “It’s not only for your own safety, it’s for the firefighters’ safety, because protecting these buildings and lives puts them at risk.”
The U.S. Forest Service deployed additional helicopters, planes, and personnel, as the blaze is currently the largest wildfire burning in the U.S. Crews from as far away as Michigan, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Colorado, and Ontario arrived to support local and state responders.
Closures and evacuations

NOAA fire view

Current radar looking good for soaking over the burning area.

brp: "Current radar looking good for soaking over the burning area.


"

Definitely good to get the rain! Just hope those cells aren't rotating, no need for tornadoes on top of wild fires.

brp: "Current radar looking good for soaking over the burning area.


"

Hope

pleflar: "

brp: "Current radar looking good for soaking over the burning area.



"

Definitely good to get the rain! Just hope those cells aren't rotating, no need for tornadoes on top of wild fires."

We were in a tornado warning here in the cities for a bit, had a little bit of rotation. Thankfully none formed from what I heard.

Anybody aware of the impact the storms had on the fires?

My group is going in at Sawbill this Saturday.

Not sure if it's known, but I noticed the fires are displayed on Google maps. If you click on them it over lays an estimated fire area. Appears to be updated often.

incident link
Here is a link that stays up to date.

Scrambled: "Anybody aware of the impact the storms had on the fires?


My group is going in at Sawbill this Saturday."

I know Brimson got decent rain. Judging from the forecast, cool weather is going to be a bigger factor than forest fires.

Today’s forecast shows about 4 hours of light rain for the fire area. From around 11am to 3pm.

I don’t know much about forest fires, but it seems like that would pretty much end the immediate fire concerns if it materializes.

Scrambled: "Anybody aware of the impact the storms had on the fires?


My group is going in at Sawbill this Saturday."

Bring warm clothes.

https://www.instagram.com/sawbillcanoeoutfitters/

Scrambled: "Anybody aware of the impact the storms had on the fires?


My group is going in at Sawbill this Saturday."

April 20th-Fire danger will increase in northern Minnesota today. Due to low relative humidity and strong winds, a Red Flag Warning is in effect for Beltrami, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, Lake of the Woods, and St. Louis counties from noon until 9 p.m. today. Please be careful!
Remember, any heat source could spark a wildfire in these conditions!
??Don’t burn and check any recent burning for lingering heat.
??Campfires are strongly discouraged.
??Use caution with any outdoor activity that creates heat or sparks.

The rain today is very heavy just to the west of the fires-the front can't seem to get where the fires are present.
Active radar
Brimson Mn

Pinetree: "The rain today is very heavy just to the west of the fires-the front can't seem to get where the fires are present."

FYI, there is a pin in your link that I am assuming is your location since its not where the fires are located. Just letting you know if you want to edit the post.

YaMarVa: "

Pinetree: "The rain today is very heavy just to the west of the fires-the front can't seem to get where the fires are present. my favorite radar weather "

FYI, there is a pin in your link that I am assuming is your location since its not where the fires are located. Just letting you know if you want to edit the post. "

Yes I absolutely know, thank you though.
It was just amazing how that high pressure was stopping the rain getting where it was needed. No rain forecast thru June 3rd now.
Changed it to Brimson Mn.
Thanks

cabin lost

Minnesota filmmaker Keri Pickett stands near her cabin Sunday, May 18, 2025, after wildfires moved through and destroyed the northeast Minnesota residence.Contributed / Keri Pickett

Fighting back tears, documentary filmmaker Keri Pickett sifted through the rubble of what remained of her northeastern Minnesota cabin Sunday after the Camp House fire swept through the area earlier in the week.

“Everything at the ground level, all the metal roofing is on top of a pile of just absolute destruction,” she said. “Everything is kind of melted together and a huge jumble, and it just looks like an ancient site, like it’s been here for a million years like this.”
Plates sit melted together, while other kitchen supplies lay in the soot Sunday, May 18, 2025, after wildfires burned down Keri Pickett’s cabin.Contributed / Keri Pickett
Pickett’s cabin, purchased through an inheritance after her aunt’s death, was only about a half-mile from the epicenter of the blaze. The only things that were spared were a cast-iron pan and, surprisingly, a recently built sauna.

“It was saved because I had a huge amount of chopped firewood right behind it, and the fire came towards the sauna, but then that hot, hot fire must have stopped it from advancing. It created a fire break,” she said. “Even though the back side of the sauna, the wiring is melted, and the wood is charred, the sauna looks totally usable.”

But the sauna was locked when the fire arrived, and the key was in the cabin at the time. Pickett was searching through what was left to find it so she could see the extent of the fire’s damage to the interior.

??NOTICE-Yesterday May 20th-afternoon a fire was reported on the Cloquet Line Rd by Ely, MN. #superiornf staff and Morse/Fall Lake Fire Department Ely Fire Department responded. Firefighters got a saw line around the fire, followed by a hose around the perimeter to secure it. A helicopter helped slow forward spread, and Morse/Fall Lake Fire Department joined with their water tender. The U.S. Forest Service - Kootenai National Forest engine assisted.
Operations for today will include cutting hazard snags (fire-weakened trees from aerial water drops or burnt roots), reinforce the fire's perimeter, and continue putting water on the fire and cold trailing (inspecting for heat areas on the fire and putting out with tools and water, especially on the fire's perimeter). Total acres are 2.8 acres. Fire has been determined to be lightning caused by last week's storms.