Another day of volatile fire weather is expected in northeast Minnesota on Tuesday, as crews continue to battle large wildfires that have burned thousands of acres and dozens of structures.

Gov. Tim Walz has called up the National Guard to help fire crews battling the flames on the ground and from the air.

St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay provided an update Tuesday morning on three major fires:

Camp House Fire near Brimson

12,000 acres

Zero-percent containment

More than 40 structures destroyed, including homes and cabins

Evacuation orders remain in place, extending east into Lake County

Jenkins Creek Fire southeast of Hoyt LakesMunger Shaw / Three Lakes Road Fire east of Canyon

St. Louis County has posted its wildfire evacuation maps online.

There are no reports of injuries from any of the fires, but Ramsay told MPR News on Tuesday morning that officials are trying to locate some people who lived in the fire zone.

“Some people chose not to evacuate, and their houses have been lost, so we need to determine where they are,” he said. “We are hoping that they evacuated, but this is a new phase of this incident, where we are working on determining the location of people, where they’re at and if they’re safe.”

Fire crews will face another day of challenging conditions on Tuesday, with low humidity and gusty winds out of the south. Red flag warnings are in place for northeast Minnesota — and much of the rest of the state — for another day.

Evacuees gather near Brimson

As the Camp House and Jenkins Creek fires grow, Hugo’s Bar and restaurant in Brimson, about 20 miles north of Two Harbors, is a hub of activity, as people who evacuated their homes share stories, commiserate, grab a bite to eat or a beer.

Patsy Elberling, 72, is there. She moved to the area over 30 years ago from Louisiana. She says she and her husband evacuated their home about three miles from here on Sunday, and they returned Monday, believing the danger had passed.

“My husband goes to the end of the road on the four-wheeler, and he’s not the person to panic, so when he comes back, (yelling) ‘Get out! Get out!’, (we had to go),” Elberling said. “And you could see the fire was on you in my neighbor’s yard at the end of the road. Her place was burning, and we’re right behind her.”

Elberling doubts her home will be there when they go back.

“I do not believe it will be, but I’ll be surprised if it is. I mean, because the smoke was almost so thick you couldn’t drive through it coming out, and you could see the fire in it, you know, I’m pretty sure it’s not going to be there,” she said.

The fires are driven by unusually hot, dry conditions and gusty winds. And they’re burning in a forest that’s been feasted on in recent years by a native caterpillar known as the spruce budworm. The pest has killed more than a million balsam fir trees over the past four years, turning them into giant matchsticks.

The sun shines through a plume of smoke

The sun shines through a plume of smoke over Salo Lake on Monday near Brimson.

Derek Montgomery for MPR News

“And when you’ve got critical fire weather days and the opportunity for higher fire intensities, that component of just that available fuel source to carry into the canopy can cause those larger crown runs,” says Christine Kolinski, public information officer with the Minnesota incident command team assigned to the fire.

“That’s when you get the big acreage gains, is when the fire gets up in the canopy and really runs,” Kolinski adds. 

Mikala Schliep saw the power of the fire up close. She and her boyfriend left the home that they’re building outside of Brimson near the Elberling’s home on Sunday. They returned Monday to get some more of their things, but on their way back toward Hugo’s on County Highway 44, the fire leapt across the road.

“It was fire on both sides (of the road),” said Schliep.  “And then, the neighbor’s house is right in front of the property there, and that was bursting with flames. So, yeah, I mean, it was just a big firewall on both sides, and there was so much smoke.”

The cause of the fires remains under investigation. But Schliep says the rumor flying around at Hugo’s is that the Camp House Fire was caused by a campfire that was left unattended. Fire officials acknowledge that investigators are looking into that possibility.

It’s unclear how many homes and cabins have been destroyed so far, though St. Louis County officials late Monday estimated that the Camp House Fire had burned more than 40 structures — which could include homes, cabins, garages or other outbuildings.

A fire along a road

The Camp House Fire burns along Hiironen Road on Monday near Brimson.

Derek Montgomery for MPR News

Some people learned the fate of their home while waiting at Hugo’s. Donna Arnold sat in the parking lot keeping a friend company who had evacuated from his place.

“Well, I just, I saw one lady, she was told, apparently, that she lost her home or cabin, and she just screamed, screamed, put her head in her hands, and she’s just devastated, you know,” Arnold said, adding “and to see that in this little community (is heartbreaking.)”

This part of Northeast Minnesota is a tight knit community, where many area residents have known each other for decades. And they’re rallying to help those who may have lost their homes in the fires. Patsy Elberling says many people who had to flee their homes are staying with friends, neighbors or family.

“And there’s nobody here that don’t have a place to go,” Elberling said. “These people (are) the most welcoming people in the world. It’s a real community here, you know.”

Elberling says she didn’t have time to leave her home without much beyond the clothes on her back. But she says what’s important is that she and her neighbors got out alive.