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Minnesota's Windy, Warm Weather Poses Wildfire Threat

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Fire crews across the state are feeling an early start to wildfire season because of unusually windy and dry weather.

Over the past few days, several grass fires across the Metro have put surrounding homes and businesses at risk.

Much of the state is under a no open burning advisory; this fire season is starting out earlier than many fire crews expected.
Friday afternoon six surrounding fire departments helped Farmington battle a grass fire near a major refinery.

Farmington fire chief James Larsen said many people continue to conduct open burns even in the windy conditions.

"The humidity is low and winds are high and that is a huge fire danger," Larsen said.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has set an open burning ban across many parts of the Metro as fire dangers are very high or extreme across more than half the state.

Linda Gormanson of the state forestry division says peak wildfire season has started about a week early this year.

"We didn't have a lot of moisture coming off of winter," Gormanson said.

Gormanson said 98 percent of fires crews respond to are man-made and often from small open burns.

The DNR recommends Minnesotans check daily during the next few weeks to see if open burning is allowed... until greener grass grows and there's more moisture in the air...

Small camp fires are still allowed in the metro but the DNR says people should be very careful with those too, this weekend.

Residents should contact their county solid waste departments for alternatives to open burning.

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