Superior National Forest fire grows amid windy conditions

Homes, cabins evacuated as planes and crews battle the fast-growing blaze

Aug 18, 20210

Alex Kormann, Star Tribune count

An aircraft dropped red fire retardant onto the Greenwood Fire on Tuesday, August 17, 2021 as seen from an airplane above the temporary flight restriction zone.

ISABELLA, Minn. – Half a dozen water bombers flew in a coordinated line Tuesday afternoon as they scooped water from Sand Lake, returned to the smoky plumes north of Greenwood Lake and drenched the burning forest. Then they returned to the lake, again and again, in a synchronized dance as they tried to contain the fast-growing fire in the Superior National Forest that started Sunday afternoon.

But the fire continued to move north and was now edging west, said Joanna Gilkeson, public information officer for the Superior National Forest. By Tuesday evening, it had grown from 2,000 acres to 3,200.

"Dropping water from the sky is the thing that is really saving us right now," Gilkeson said. But she said the fire "really kicked up" late in the afternoon as winds fanned its growth.

https://www.startribune.com/superior-national-forest-fire-grows-amid-windy-conditions/600088633/