Border fire scorches 50,000 acres

GRAND MARAIS, Minn., May 12 (UPI) -- About 500 firefighters worked Friday to contain a wildfire that charred 50,000-plus acres in northern Minnesota's pristine camping and fishing wilderness.

The huge blaze filled the sky with smoke the day ahead of the state's popular fishing opener.

"It's very emotional," said Debbie Mark, the owner of Seagull Outfitters who lost two cabins to the fire while her other buildings were saved by a sprinkler system.

The fire that started at a Ham Lake campsite Saturday had destroyed at least 134 structures and forced the evacuation of more than 270 people along the Gunflint Trail by Friday, the Cook County News-Herald reported. The blaze also reached into neighboring Canada.

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area had been considered ripe for a major forest fire since July 1999 when a storm flattened millions of trees and forestry officials decided against allowing loggers to remove them. That left huge amounts of dried out fuel in the area for the fire to feed on.

Some angry and frustrated citizens questioned why there hadn't been an early fire ban in the county given it has been so so dry this spring, the News-Herald said.