Red Flag warning issued Saturday, fire weather watch issued for Sunday

The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for several counties in northwest and central Minnesota effective until 9 p.m. Saturday, according to the Minnesota DNR.

Affected counties include Becker, Beltrami, Cass, Chippewa, Clay, Clearwater, Douglas, Grant, Hubbard, Itasca, Kittson, Koochiching, Lac Qui Parle, Lake of the Woods, Mahnomen, Marshall, Norman, Otter Tail, Pennington, Polk, Pope, Red Lake, Roseau, Stevens, Swift, Todd, Wadena, Wilkin and Yellow Medicine.

A Red Flag Warning means fires can spread quickly and get out of control in low humidity and high wind. The DNR states that in counties where a Red Flag Warning is in effect, people should not burn anything and check any recent fires to make sure it is completely out.

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

Additionally, a Fire Weather Watch has been issued for several counties in northwest and western Minnesota on Sunday from noon until 9 p.m. Outdoor burning is discouraged as the low humidity and high winds could produce near-critical fire weather conditions.

Visit the National Weather Service for updates, as Fire Weather Watches can quickly turn into Red Flag conditions.

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