Late Snow Helps Lower Wildfire Risk, But NW MN Still Seeing Drought

Wildfire danger in Minnesota had been high recently until snow arrived earlier this week.

According to the Minnesota DNR, wildfires are usually caused by people. The snow this week should help with dry conditions and prevent future wildfires in northern Minnesota.

Travis Verdegan, DNR Predictive Services Coordinator, gave us a deeper dive into what can be expected after the snow.

“Short-term, the snow definitely helps. We’re gonna see our fire activity drop off in the state pretty dramatically where we have snow,” said Verdegan. “Where we have snow, the fuels that typically would support fires that would start and spread are just not going to be available to burn for the majority of the state.”

But he added that with the varied snowfall amounts from the storm in different parts of the state, not all areas are alike.

“We do have some areas we’re keeping an eye on up in the northwest part of the state where we didn’t get a whole lot of snow, if any at all,” Verdegan explained. “In that more long-term kind of outlook, it’s going to be beneficial in terms of the drought development that we’ve been seeing across the state. However, it’s going to take more than just one event for us to really see things really turn around.”

Information on wildfires in Minnesota can be found on the DNR website. Updates on current drought conditions can be found here.