With a growing fire reported in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) and a "red flag" fire conditions warning issued for the northern part of the state, Governor Tim Pawlenty has directed the Minnesota National Guard to send helicopters and crews to aid firefighting efforts in northern Minnesota.

"Hot and dry conditions have created extreme and dangerous fire conditions across northern Minnesota," Governor Pawlenty said. "I’m ordering the Guard into action today to assist the efforts underway to battle fires in the region, including the BWCA."

At the direction of Governor Pawlenty late Friday, the Minnesota Army National Guard began mobilizing two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and crews to Bemidji. They will be in the region today to support firefighting activities of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and federal agencies in northwestern Minnesota. The crews will be briefed and may be assigned to a fire as early as mid-afternoon.

A fire was detected Friday afternoon in the blowdown area of the BWCA. It is burning just south of Seagull Lake on U.S. Forest Service lands near the end of the Gunflint Trail, approximately 50 miles from Grand Marais. The fire doubled in size overnight and has spread to approximately 800 acres. The smoke column can be seen as far away as Isle Royale in Lake Superior more than 100 miles away.

Under the coordination of the Minnesota Interagency Fire Center, two CL-415s from Ontario and the Minnesota DNR CL-215 have been dropping water on the fire this morning. MIFC has also requested an additional CL-215 water scooper from the State of North Carolina and it is expected to be in service this afternoon.

MFIC firefighting crews and equipment based in Bemidji and other areas are now responding to the BWCA fire. Three additional fire crews from Indiana, Missouri and Michigan will arrive over the next couple days.

The National Guard crews and helicopters will ensure that there are adequate resources to respond to additional fires. The MIFC is reporting approximately four to six fires per day. At 12 noon today, an Incident Management Team from the MIFC reported to Grand Marais and will manage the BWCA firefighting effort. Further updates and reports will be issued from Grand Marais by the MIFC once the team is operational.

MIFC has additional resources including planes, helicopters, and other equipment positioned in key locations in northern Minnesota including Hibbing, Bemidji, Grand Rapids, and Ely to respond to fires like the one in the BWCA.

Weather conditions for this afternoon are critical and could produce extreme fire behavior. The National Weather Service has issued a "red flag" warning for all of northern Minnesota today. The combination of high heat and strong winds mean that critical fire conditions now exist in the warning areas.