Fire weather watch for 61 Minnesota Counties exhibited this weekend

Minneapolis (Fox 9) – – The National Weather Service published a fire weather watch for a large part of Minnesota this weekend.

Fire weather watch

The background story:

Due to the high risk of fire in the whole state, the NWS emphasized a fire weather clock for Saturday and Sunday. The weather this weekend, including the low humidity and the wind, is expected to generate almost critical fire conditions. Under these conditions, every spark can ignite a running fire that spreads quickly and is difficult to contain.

A watch is available from Saturday morning to Sunday evening for the counties in northwest Minnesota, including Beltrami, Kittson, Lake of the Woods, Marshall and Roseau.

Sixty -one of Minnesotas 87 counties are under a fire clock from Sunday morning to evening. NWS including the following counties: Aitkin, Anoka, Becker, Beltrami, Benton, Big Stone, Blue Earth, Brown, Carlton, Carver, Cass, Chippewa, Chisago, Clay, Clearwater, Cottonwood, Crow Wing, Douglas, Faribault, Grant, Hennepin, Hubbard, Isanti, Ittasca, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Kanabec, Kittson, Kouchiching, Lac Qui Parle, Lake of the Woods, Le Sueur, Lincoln, Lyon, Mahnomen, Marshall, Martin, McLeod, Mille Lacs, Murrison, Murray, Nicollet, Norman, Otter Tail, Pennington, Pine, Pipestone, Polk, Pope, Ramsey, Red Lake, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Roseau, Scott, Sherburne, Sibley, St. Louis, Stearns, Stevens, Swift, Todd, Travers, Wadena, Watonwan, Wilkin, Wright and Yellow Medicine.

Fire risk and restrictions:

The Minnesota DNR said that all outdoor burns are discouraged. Until Friday morning, no open burn is allowed in the northwest of Minnesota, while central and northern regions require variance permits.

On the DNR website it says that Minnesota has a high or very high risk of fire on Friday, which means that fires can begin easily and spread quickly or very quickly.

Here you will find the latest fire risk and incineration restrictions on the DNR website.

Forest fires in Minnesota

According to the numbers:

Since Minnesota, at least 475 forest fires have been reported since April. The DNR says that forest fires not only threaten property, but can lead to people being injured or even leading to death.

“Every year, even this year, we learn from people who have suffered serious injuries in whom the hospital stay -or worse still deaths -if you have tried to control a forest fire yourself,” said William Glesener, supervisor for forest fire operations with the DNR. “As with a house fire, a forest fire is extremely dangerous and unpredictable and should be left to the experts to manage it.”

If you recognize a running fire, don't try to bring it out yourself, but go to a safe place and call 911.

Runfire smoke outlook:

The pollution and control agency in Minnesota published its forecasts for the summer quality and the forecast of forest fires from 2025 on Monday. The state is expected to be affected by forest fire smoke between 12 and 16 days.

The risk is powered by drought in the region and by increased forest fire activity in Canada. In addition, an El Niño Southern Oscillation pattern can lead to more variable wind patterns, which makes it more likely that the smoke drift into the state.

Forest fires Weatherminnesota