Greenwood, Minnesota fire “like a freight train,” officials say

A rapidly moving wildfire in northeast Minnesota has drawn hundreds of firefighters and caused a wave of evacuations since it began nine days ago.

The Greenwood fire, in the Upper National Forest near the Canadian border, has burned at least 19,000 acres and is zero percent contained, according to the US Forest Service. The fire was started by lightning, authorities said.

In a press conference Monday night, Brian Pisarek, an incident commander, compared it to a “freight train.”

“Once it starts rolling,” he said, “it starts to build up and feed on itself.”

More than 400 firefighters were assigned to the Greenwood blaze, one of the state’s two major fires. About 300 homes have been evacuated, a fire official said. Residents in some areas have been urged to prepare to evacuate.

An air quality alert was in place until Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. The Greenwood Fire and other fires burning just across the Canadian border will contribute to smoky conditions across the region, and changes in wind direction over the next day will contribute to plumes of smoke, a declared the meteorological service. Strong to severe thunderstorms are expected Tuesday, with winds of up to 60 miles per hour and heavy hail.