The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for several counties in northwest and west-central Minnesota from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. today, May 10, due to extreme fire danger.

Affected counties include Beltrami, Big Stone, Clearwater, Kittson, Lake of the Woods, Marshall, Pennington, Polk, Red Lake, Roseau, and Traverse.

A Red Flag Warning means fires can spread quickly and grow out of control under the predicted weather conditions, including high winds and low relative humidity. Do not burn in counties where a Red Flag Warning is in effect and check any recent burning to ensure the coals are completely out cold.

“When fire risk is this high it’s important to be careful with anything could spark a wildfire,” said Karen Harrison, DNR wildfire prevention specialist.

The DNR will not issue or activate open burning permits during the Red Flag Warning, and campfires are discouraged.

Additionally, a Fire Weather Watch has been issued for 61 counties for tomorrow, May 11, where strong winds and low relative humidity are predicted to produce near-critical fire weather conditions. Outdoor burning is discouraged. Fire Weather Watches are evolving situations and could quickly progress to Red Flag conditions. Visit the National Weather Service for updates.

For more information and daily updates visit the statewide fire danger and burning restrictions page of the DNR website.

To receive text updates on current wildfire risk and open burning restrictions in Minnesota text “FIRE” to 66468.