Weaver Dunes. The view from State Highway 61 looking south. Image: Sananda McCall

Fire contained: Scrub oak and pine forests spared

KELLOGG, Minn. – People living in rural Weaver Dunes ordered to evacuate as a grass fire exploded in parched grassland. This was about 2 p.m. As the fire grew, Kellogg firefighters asked for emergency assistance, especially tanker trucks, from seven agencies, including volunteer fire departments in  Goodview, Minnesota City and Elgin, all more than 20 miles away. The area, known locally as West Newton, was re-opened two hours later.  Expecting the worst, farmers activated sprinkler irrigation systems to soak he ground. Police diverted traffic off County Road 84, which was the nearest access that firefighters had to the fire.

Empty stalls. At Kellogg Fire Department. It was all-hands-on-deck six mle south of town at the Weaver Dunes grass fire. Image: Steve Lunde