Responders at a field fire near McClusky May 10th. Photo: Seth Galvin, Goodrich Rural Fire Department
BISMARCK, N.D. (KFGO) – Dry and Windy conditions have created Red Flag Warnings across North Dakota.
Over the weekend, engines and crews were staged throughout the state to quickly respond and reinforce local firefighters as fires popped up. These engines and firefighters included the North Dakota Wildland Taskforce, North Dakota Forest Service, and a team from Colorado.
The North Dakota Watch Center, a 24-hour monitoring and notification center within the Department of Emergency Services, was notified of fires in fourteen counties Sunday. In total, 60 fire starts were reported over the weekend, burning over 1,100 new acres in addition to the acres burning in the ongoing Turtle Mountain fire.
A field fire northeast of McClusky in Sheridan County burned one tractor and 125 acres. A fire southwest of Sherwood in Renville County on Saturday burned an outbuilding.
Two grassfires broke out in the ongoing fire complex in the Turtle Mountain area. The total acreage estimate remains at 3,600 acres, is still active, and is anticipated to be a long-lived event.
“We can tell the public is hyper-aware of the threat of wildfires and is helping to do their part in avoiding burning and notifying emergency responders of smoke. Thank you. Every fire we don’t start is one that our firefighters don’t have to go fight, putting themselves in danger,” says Darin Hanson, Director of Homeland Security within the Department of Emergency Services. “We all need to keep working together to prevent wildfires and support our first responders.”
Ratings are provided by the National Weather Service, while fuel conditions are based on a variety of inputs and modeling. The ratings are low, moderate, high, very high, and extreme. Additionally, fire weather watches and red flag warnings can be issued to raise public awareness of critical fire weather conditions.
The fire danger ratings are indicative of the threat of fire growth, not threat of fire starts. Should a fire ignite, it is more likely that it will spread rapidly during higher fire danger rating days.
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