Fire season 2013 has begun. At press time, a fire six miles west of the Cook – Lake county border and three miles south of the U.S. – Canadian border in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness had grown from 15 acres on August 27 to 100 acres on August 28.
U.S. Forest Service spokesperson Becca Manlove, Information Officer for the West Zone of the Superior National Forest, reports that the Knife Lake fire is burning in an area difficult to work in as the lake has many bays and little lakes surrounding it. The interior of the fire is in difficult terrain containing blowdown and steep slopes. The fuel mix is standing and blown down balsam and jack pine. There is still active torching and considerable smoke. The fire is estimated to be 40 percent contained.
At press time 16 firefighters and four public safety staff were assigned to the Knife Lake fire. Equipment on the fire was an CL215 air tanker, small helicopter, and an air attack fixed wing and two deHavilland Beaver floatplanes.
Some closures have been put in place for the South Arm of Knife Lake, consisting of 24 campsites and nine portages. At press time all entry points to the BWCAW were still open.
Forest Service aircraft spotted other fires this week. The Sedative Lake fire near Ima Lake, about 10 miles west of the Cook-Lake county line, was relatively small with only a single tree burning. A two-person crew was working on the site, which had burned about 3/10ths of an acre. It is about 60 percent contained.
The Disappointment Lake fire was discovered Saturday, August 24 near Snowbank Lake and on Monday, August 28 was declared out. It burned about a quarter acre of forest.
Manlove said it was not certain what caused the fires, but it was likely lightning strikes. The fires were spotted by routine monitoring flights by the U.S. Forest Service aircraft.
Manlove stressed that fire danger remains high. BWCAW visitors are asked to use extreme caution with campfires. She said campfires are safest in the evening after 7 p.m. when temperatures are cool, winds are usually lighter and relative humidity is increased. She reminds campers to douse fires and embers completely.
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