A
watchful eye has been on on the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
since July 4, 1999, when over 400,000 acres of forest were
blown down. A fire broke out this weekend at Alpine
Lake, located just West of the end of the historic Gunflint
Trail and Sea Gull Lake. While this is definitely not
the first fire in the BWCA since the blowdown, the Alpine Lake
Fire may be grabbing more attention as it is in an area that
received some of the worst damage in the '99 blowdown.
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Here for the most recent update.
Fire Information August 7, 2005 11:00
Alpine Lake Fire
The fire is currently 478 acres. It is located on the
Gunflint Ranger District of the Superior National Forest in a
portion of the Blowdown Area that was not severely affected by
the 1999 storm. It is burning within the Boundary Waters Canoe
Area Wilderness between Alpine and Seagull Lakes. The fuel
types include mixed hardwoods and lowland. The portage from
Seagull to Alpine is closed. Use Seagull - Rog as an alternate
route. The lightly used canoe route
Seagull-Grandpa-Roy-Saganaga is closed. No archeological sites
are threatened. There are no evacuations at this time.
A Minnesota Type 2 Management Team took control of the
incident at 7:00 am on August 7, 2005. The major emphasis of
the team is to protect private property, allow for continued
use in the Wilderness Area and minimize damage to the natural
resource.
Four (4) 20 person Type 2 firefighter teams have been
ordered. Today?s emphasis will be on air operations including
use of CL-215 water scooping aircraft.
Cooperating Agencies include: Cook County Sheriff Office
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Gunflint Volunteer
Fire Department US Fish and Wildlife Service Bureau of Indian
Affairs U.S. Forest Service National Park Service Minnesota
Department of Public Safety
The Cook County Sheriff and the Forest Service have the
Unified Command process in place. Public Safety is the #1
objective.
There is no estimate of containment at this time.
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